Newsmags See Strike-Affected Declines

TV Week’s Michele Greppi writes about the decline in ratings this year for newsmagazines like 20/20, 60 Minutes and 48 Hours.

“The writers strike-afflicted 2007-08 broadcast season confronted network television newsmagazine shows with the same viewer flu that hit entertainment shows,” she writes.

“I call this year a do-over,” said 48 Hours EP Susan Zirinsky of the strike.

60 Minutes, the “grandaddy” of newsmagazines, saw just slight declines in season-to-season viewership. “We had a very successful year. People still think of us as the place to go,” said Jeff Fager, EP of 60 Minutes, the, “only newsmagazine to finish in the top 30 of all prime-time programs.”

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