Posted by Bud on December 30, 2009 at 09:02:55:
Chicago Bears, ESPN win in overtime -- even as ESPN's favorite player loses
ESPN had a great night ratings-wise Monday, despite its annoying bid to turn the Bears-Vikings telecast into a long-form campaign ad for Minnesota quarterback Brett Favre's Hall of Fame candidacy.
How tightly did ESPN cling to its predetermined storyline? The first two questions to Bears quarterback Jay Cutler immediately after Chicago's 36-30 victory were about Favre, who's a shoo-in for Canton with or without genuflection from the TV booth so long as he someday retires long enough to qualify.
ESPN�s coverage Monday was the night�s most watched show on all of television nationally, averaging a 12.0 household rating (or roughly 11.9 million homes) and around 17.0 million viewers.
Not counting breaking news, that puts it at No. 6 on the list of most-watched programs in cable TV history in terms of viewers � just ahead of the 2007 debut of Disney Channel�s �High School Musical 2� � and No. 5 in terms of households.
It�s also the third-highest rated cable game this season after Green Bay-Minnesota on Oct. 5 and New England-New Orleans on Nov. 30, which rank No. 1 and No. 2 all-time among cable programs.
Locally, nearly a third of all households were tuned into the Bears-Vikings game, which was the No. 1 and No. 2 program on Chicago TV. ESPN got a 10.5 rating for the game here, while its simulcast on WLS-Ch. 7 scored a 20.6 rating, according to overnight estimates. Each local rating point in Chicago equals around 35,000 households.
Top 10 Most-Viewed Programs in Cable Television History by Viewers:
1. 10/05/2009 Green Bay Packers-Minnesota Vikings (ESPN) 21,839,000
2. 11/30/2009 New England Patriots-New Orleans Saints (ESPN) 21,402,000
3. 9/15/2008 Philadelphia Eagles-Dallas Cowboys (ESPN) 18,608,000
4. 12/03/2007 New England Patriots-Baltimore Ravens (ESPN) 17,522,000
5. 8/17/2007 "High School Musical 2" (Disney Channel) 17,241,000
6. 12/28/2009 Minnesota Vikings-Chicago Bears (ESPN) 17,006,000
7. 11/09/1993 "Larry King Live" NAFTA debate (CNN) 16,837,000
8. 12/25/1994 Detroit Lions-Miami Dolphins (ESPN) 16,063,000
9. 10/23/2006 New York Giants-Dallas Cowboys (ESPN) 16,028,000
10. 11/09/2009 Pittsburgh Steelers-Denver Broncos (ESPN) 16,002,000
Top 10 Most-Viewed Programs in Cable Television History by Households:
1. 10/05/2009 Green Bay Packers-Minnesota Vikings (ESPN) 15,136,000
2. 11/30/2009 New England Patriots-New Orleans Saints (ESPN) 14,872,000
3. 9/15/2008 Philadelphia Eagles-Dallas Cowboys (ESPN) 12,953,000
4. 12/03/2007 New England Patriots-Baltimore Ravens (ESPN) 12,529,000
5. 12/28/2009 Minnesota Vikings-Chicago Bears (ESPN) 11,899,000
6. 10/23/2006 New York Giants-Dallas Cowboys (ESPN) 11,807,000
7. 11/09/2009 Pittsburgh Steelers-Denver Broncos (ESPN) 11,358,000
8. 9/28/2009 Carolina Panthers-Dallas Cowboys (ESPN) 11,354,000
9. 11/09/1993 "Larry King Live" NAFTA debate (CNN) 11,174,000
10. 10/02/2008 Palin-Biden vice-presidential debate (Fox News Channel) 11,098,000
Note: Live + same day; excludes unscheduled breaking news;