Oprah "Big" for ABC, but Fox wins weekly race

By James Hibberd

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - The premiere of the ABC reality show "Oprah's Big Give" was one of the few bright spots in the 23rd week of the season, as the networks struggled to lure back viewers after the Hollywood writers strike.

The primetime schedule remains peppered with scripted repeats, helping Fox achieve its eighth consecutive weekly victory during the week ended March 2. Fox averaged 13.8 million viewers, followed by CBS (8.2 million), ABC (8 million), NBC (7.3 million) and the CW (2.3 million).

Three nights of "American Idol" (topped by Tuesday's episode, 28.6 million) powered the Fox lineup, with two episodes giving giant lead-ins to record-setting episodes of "Back to You" (12.2 million) on Tuesday and "Don't Forget the Lyrics" (14.4 million) on Thursday.

CBS is essentially in a ratings holding pattern until its scripted shows resume, with veteran reality hit "Survivor" (12.5 million) its highest-rated offering.

For ABC, "Oprah's Big Give" (15.7 million) clocked in as the third-most-watched premiere of the season. ABC also won Monday with the premiere of the TV movie "A Raisin in the Sun" (12.7 million). "Lost" (12.9 million) remains the top-rated scripted series, even with a ratings dip of 5.6 percent from the week before.

NBC scored with Monday's "Deal or No Deal" (15.4 million), but its new Dennis Miller-hosted game show, "Amnesia" (5 million), took a steep dive in its second week.

On the CW, "America's Next Top Model" (3.8 million, 2.0/5) led the network's week.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter