Los Angeles - After setting a TLC ratings record last week, Sarah Palin's reality show plummeted for its second episode.
“Sarah Palin's Alaska” fell 40% on Sunday night to 3 million viewers. Not many were in the key adult demo either. Only 885 000 viewers were aged 18 to 49, a 44% slide from last week. In fact, the median age of the show is 57 - that's 15 years older than TLC's average.
TLC expected a ratings drop coming off the high-flying premiere; executives realised some of their numbers were driven by sheer curiosity rather than eagerness to see an Alaska-based travelogue reality show. Competition from “Sunday Night Football” and the American Music Awards may have impacted the numbers as well.
“We are very happy with the ongoing strength of ‘Sarah Palin's Alaska’, and it continues to drive big ratings gains for TLC,'' said a network spokesperson, who noted that “Conan” recently suffered a similar sophomore-episode drop on TBS.
The debut episode of “Sarah Palin's Alaska” drew 5 million viewers, the most-watched program launch in TLC's history. - Reuters