Letterman Seeks Writers' Deal

Jimmy Fallon tops Craig Ferguson in ratings race

(NEWSER) - Jay Leno owned the 11:35 time slot last night, smashing both David Letterman and ABC’s combination of Nightline and Jimmy Kimmel as curious viewers tuned in to see Leno take back the Tonight Show gig. Leno scored a 5.7 rating, compared to 3.0 for Letterman, 3.4 for Nightline, and 1.8 for Kimmel, Entertainment Weekly reports. More»

From election-night snafus to the WGA strike

(NEWSER) - It’s been an embarrassing decade for TV networks, as the Hollywood Reporter proves with its list of the aughties’ biggest industry mistakes:

1. Hollywood writers’ strike: It was unnecessary and “mutually destructive”—and for viewers, “has there ever been a longer 14 weeks?”
2. ABC’s rejection of CSI: The show has scored $6 billion for CBS and prompted spurned producer Jerry Bruckheimer to walk out on Disney.

ABC launches ad campaign to tout its victory

(NEWSER) - ABC is trying to remind America that it has a show on at 11:35, too. The network is launching a campaign touting Nightline's ratings, which, since Conan O’Brien’s Tonight Show takeover, have averaged 3.459 million viewers a night. That puts it on top of both David Letterman’s Late Show (3.4 million) and the Tonight Show (3.239 million). More»

Despite strike, Jay still has Dave on the ropes

(NEWSER) - Despite a dearth of guests willing to cross Writers Guild picket lines and near-scab status himself, late-night host Jay Leno has still managed to trounce rival David Letterman in ratings. Not that either is that funny, but Letterman at least returned with "a fetching gray beard, and the moral high ground"—so why couldn't he steal the show? asks New York's Sam Anderson. More»

Academy, keenly aware of Golden Globes' fate, is behind schedule

(NEWSER) - After the threat of picketing writers shut down the Golden Globes, organizers of the Academy Awards know they're on thin ice, the Hollywood Reporter writes. "Our hope is we can work something out or that the strike is resolved in time," Academy executive director Bruce Davis said of the planned Feb. 24 event, already behind schedule. More»