Anybody want to argue about the profit value of gossip and why dignified media companies have joined the other frogs in the pot?

Lookie here at this Broadcasting & Cable header:

“Syndication Ratings: Britney’s Travails Are Mags’ Triumphs — Syndicated Entertainment Magazines Up by Double-Digits. Here’s the meat of the article:

In the week ending Jan. 6, CBS’ Entertainment Tonight had the largest increase of any strip in first run, gaining 26% from the prior week to a 4.4 live-plus-same-day national household average, according to Nielsen Media Research. That includes a 34% ratings jump Friday, Jan. 4, the day news broke that Spears had been hospitalized after a frightening custody stand-off.

…The constant chronicling of Spears’ problems also drove the other magazines up. CBS’ Inside Edition jumped 15% to a 3.1 four-day average. NBC Universal’s Access Hollywood, dropping both New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, gained 14% to a 2.5. CBS’ The Insider and Warner Bros.’ Extra both counted all five days, with Insider increasing 11% to a 2.1 and Extra leaping 20% to a 1.8.

So now we know why the AP declared last week that Britney was a big deal.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 16th, 2008 at 7:25 pm and is filed under Broadcasting, Journalism, Culture. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.