TV Ratings: Food, Home Appeal To Captive Viewers

Americans stuck at home staring at fading furniture and wondering what to cook for dinner have been a boon for television channels like HGTV and the Food Network.

The Food Network’s overall ratings in April were up 25 percent over the same month last year, while HGTV was up 22 percent, the Associated Press reports citing Nielsen data.

Both networks have adjusted programming in reaction to coronavirus shutdowns with more in the works. The Food Network’s Guy Fieri has gotten takeout at some of his favorite dives, and other chefs are exploring how to be creative with what’s in the pantry. HGTV is planning a show where new products are left on the doorway of people and design experts will judge how the family made use of them, said Kathleen Finch, chief lifestyle brand officer for the Discovery-owned networks.

HGTV hit paydirt this month with shows that featured Brad Pitt, Melissa McCarthy and other celebrities improving the living situations for people they know. The network is planning a show that will feature comics sitting around and commenting on episodes of “Househunters,” Finch said.

Four Discovery-owned networks — TLC, HGTV, Discovery and the Food Network — were among the 10 most popular cable networks in prime time last week, Nielsen said.

CBS topped the broadcast networks in prime time last week, averaging 5.8 million viewers. ABC was second with 3.7 million, NBC had 3.6 million, Fox had 2.7 million, Univision had 1.6 million, ION Television had 1.2 million and Telemundo had 910,000.

⏩ Broadcast TV Top 20 Shows (Total Viewers):

1. “Young Sheldon,” CBS, 10.15 million.
2. “60 Minutes,” CBS, 9.31 million.
3. “Blue Bloods,” CBS, 8.52 million.
4. “NCIS,” CBS, 8.4 million.
5. “Survivor,” CBS, 8.1 million.
6. “The Masked Singer,” Fox, 7.8 million.
7. “Magnum, P.I.,” CBS, 7.21 million.
8. “FBI,” CBS, 7.03 million.
9. “FBI: Most Wanted,” CBS, 6.97 million.
10. “911,” Fox, 6.81 million.

11. “The Voice,” NBC, 6.68 million.
12. “Man With a Plan” (Thursday, 8:30 p.m.), CBS, 6.59 million.
13. “American Idol,” ABC, 6.4 million.
14. “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire,” ABC, 6.21 million.
15. “Man With a Plan” (Thursday, 9 p.m.), CBS, 6.08 million.
16. “The Conners,” ABC, 5.96 million.
17. “MacGyver,” CBS, 5.89 million.
18. “Seal Team,” CBS, 5.76 million.
19. “Station 19,” ABC, 5.58 million.
20. “America’s Funniest Home Videos,” ABC, 5.27 million.

ABC’s “World News Tonight” won the evening news competition, averaging 10.5 million viewers. NBC’s “Nightly News” had 9.5 million and the “CBS Evening News” had 6.6 million.

For the week: Fox News Channel crushed the cable competition, averaging 3.69 million viewers in prime time. MSNBC had 1.78 million, CNN had 1.55 million, TLC had 1.302 million and HGTV had 1.3 million.

For the month:  CNN aw its prime time lineup drop 26% in April compared to the same month one year ago. CNN's total audience in prime time was well under a million viewers--767,000--while competitors MSNBC and Fox News finished the month far ahead: MSNBC in second place overall with 1.660 million total viewers, and Fox News leading all of cable with a total audience of 2.395 million.

According to Forbes, April ranks as CNN's lowest-rated month among total viewers in nearly four years, since October 2015. CNN's Cuomo Primetime, which has been the network's highest-rated hour, drew a total audience of 917,000 viewers in April, the show's worst-ever performance.

Among prime time cable news shows, Fox News' Hannity led with a total audience of 3.086 million, followed by FNC's Tucker Carlson Tonight (2.834 million) and MSNBC's The Rachel Maddow Show (2.630 million). None of CNN's prime time hours finished among the top five shows overall. CNN's top-rated hour, Cuomo Primetime, finished in 26th place.

MSNBC, which has established itself solidly as the second-place rival to Fox News, has now beaten CNN for 27 straight months in prime, and for the first time tying CNN among viewers 25-54 for the total day, the first time MSNBC has posted a #2 finish since June 2014.