CBS, Fox and NBC have all "taken a ratings hit this season when you exclude prime-time sports like the Super Bowl, upping the pressure on programmers to deliver some entertainment breakouts that will resonate with viewers and advertisers," according to Joe Flint of the WALL STREET JOURNAL. Fox had a 2% gain in viewers and was "flat in the coveted adults 18-49 demographic" versus the '15-16 season. However, the "story changes when Fox’s Super Bowl and World Series coverage is stripped out of its ratings." Minus those events, Fox was "down 19% in viewers and 18% in adults 18-49." NBC was "up 1% in viewers and down only 5% in adults 18-49 when its NFL coverage is included." But minus football, NBC was down 1% in viewers and 6% in adults 18-49 during the '16-17 TV season. While CBS' was down 8% in viewers, it will "still take first place in that category by a wide margin for the ninth season in a row." It also "fell 16% in adults 18-49." CBS' numbers "drop even further when sports is included because it had the Super Bowl rights" in February '16 (WSJ.com, 5/12).
