Home Run Derby Helps ESPN July Primetime Viewership Jump 27.2%
USA was the most-viewed cable net in primetime for the month of July with an average of 2.9 million viewers. ESPN ranked sixth with 1.5 million viewers, up 27.2% from last July. Other Bristol networks did not fare as well, with ESPN2, ESPNews and ESPN Classic all showing year-to-year declines in July. On the strength of strong viewership gains for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, Speed TV also saw gains, with viewership up 24.0%. TNT had two NASCAR Sprint Cup Series telecasts in primetime in July, but weaker viewership for the Chicagoland race on July 12 helped contribute to the net being down 5.2% from a year ago. The following lists the top ten cable nets for primetime viewership in July, as well as the top sports nets, with comparisons to July '07 (THE DAILY).
|
MOST-VIEWED CABLE NETWORKS IN PRIMETIME FOR JULY
|
|
(June 30 - July 27)
|
|
RK
|
NET
|
JULY '08
VIEWERS (000)
|
JULY '07
VIEWERS (000)
|
% +/-
|
|
1
|
USA
|
2,939
|
2,635
|
11.5%
|
|
2
|
Disney Channel
|
2,497
|
3,011
|
-17.1%
|
|
3
|
TNT
|
2,440
|
2,574
|
-5.2%
|
|
4
|
TBS
|
1,762
|
1,475
|
19.5%
|
|
5
|
Nick at Nite
|
1,642
|
1,221
|
34.5%
|
|
6
|
ESPN
|
1,489
|
1,171
|
27.2%
|
|
7
|
Lifetime
|
1,462
|
1,508
|
-3.1%
|
|
8
|
Fox News
|
1,451
|
1,338
|
8.4%
|
|
9
|
Cartoon Network
|
1,368
|
1,329
|
2.9%
|
|
10
|
Hallmark Channel
|
1,360
|
1,251
|
8.7%
|
|
33
|
ESPN2
|
519
|
565
|
-8.1%
|
|
40
|
WGN
|
378
|
345
|
9.6%
|
|
45
|
Speed
|
274
|
221
|
24.0%
|
|
54
|
Versus
|
174
|
200
|
-13.0%
|
|
61
|
Golf Channel
|
123
|
143
|
-14.0%
|
|
67
|
ESPNews
|
77
|
91
|
-15.4%
|
|
68
|
ESPN Classic
|
72
|
99
|
-27.3%
|
|
69
|
NFL Network
|
64
|
64
|
0.0%
|
DERBY DAYS: The State Farm Home Run Derby on ESPN was the most-viewed cable telecast for the month of July, with 9.1 million viewers. The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series also had two telecasts in the top ten, with last weekend's Allstate 400 at the Brickyard telecast on ESPN ranking fourth overall in July, and the Coke Zero 400 telecast on TNT ranking sixth.
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MOST-VIEWED PROGRAMS ON CABLE FOR JULY
|
|
(June 30 - July 27)
|
|
RK
|
DATE
|
PROGRAM
|
NET
|
TIME
|
VIEWERS (000)
|
|
1
|
7/14
|
MLB: Home Run Derby
|
ESPN
|
8:19-11:00pm
|
9,116
|
|
2
|
7/14
|
"The Closer"
|
TNT
|
9:00-10:00pm
|
7,809
|
|
3
|
7/21
|
"The Closer"
|
TNT
|
9:00-10:00pm
|
7,058
|
|
4
|
7/27
|
NASCAR Sprint Cup:
Allstate 400 at the Brickyard |
ESPN
|
2:00-6:00pm
|
6,668
|
|
5
|
7/10
|
"Burn Notice" |
USA
|
10:00-11:00pm
|
6,565
|
|
6
|
7/5
|
NASCAR Sprint Cup:
Coke Zero 400 |
TNT
|
8:05-11:23pm
|
6,506
|
|
7
|
7/7
|
"WWE Raw" |
USA
|
10:00-11:02pm
|
6,119
|
|
8
|
7/26
|
"Hannah & Miley:
Best of Both Worlds" |
Disney
|
8:00-9:25pm
|
5,864
|
|
9
|
7/13
|
"In Plain Sight" |
USA
|
10:00-11:00pm
|
5,849
|
|
10
|
7/18
|
"Monk" |
USA
|
9:00-10:00pm
|
5,639
|
|
