Pageant’s ratings jump on TLC
TLC did better than expected with Saturday’s live airing of the Miss America pageant, although the telecast’s reach was still a long way from its glory days on network TV.
An average of 3.6 million viewers tuned in to “Miss America Live,” a 50% jump from last year’s ceremony on rival cable outlet CMT, according to figures from Nielsen Media Research. The program was the night’s No. 1 cable show among women aged 18 to 49.
The live ceremony in Las Vegas, which saw 19-year-old Kirsten Haglund win the crown, was preceded for the first time by a four-episode unscripted series, “Miss America: Reality Check,” which followed the 52 contestants as they prepared for the pageant. Friday’s finale logged 1.1 million viewers.
Nevertheless, the pageant itself is a faint echo of its former status as a broadcast TV perennial. Earlier this decade, the show was still averaging 10 million or so viewers per year.
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-- Scott Collins
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