Primetime Ratings Report For the week of September 29, 2008 (Based on National Live + Same Day Program Ratings)

Despite the Preemption of "Grey's Anatomy" for the VP Debate on Thursday, ABC Takes Second in Viewers and Young Adults, and is No. 1 with Key Women

ABC Claims 5 of the Week's Top 20 Shows in Adults 18-49 and 3 of the Top 5 In Viewers, Including the No. 1 Show in Each with "Housewives" and "DWTS"

Monday's Most-Watched TV Show for the 2nd Week Running , ABC's "Dancing With the Stars" Leads its 2-Hour Time Period in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49

"Boston Legal" Tops NBC's Monday Special Preview of "Life" by 1.7 Million Viewers

In its Highly-Competitive Tuesday Slot, ABC's "Opportunity Knocks" Retains 100% of It's Week-Ago Debut Young Adult Audience and Grows Across All Key Men Demos

Jumping from its Lead-in by 9.1 Million Viewers and by 100% in Adults 18-49, "DWTS Results" Ranks No. 1 in its Tuesday Time Slot with Viewers and Key Women

After a Nearly 10 Month Strike-Induced Layoff, ABC Returns its Wednesday Night Lineup at No. 2 in Adults 18-49 and Finishes a Strong No. 1 in Adults 18-34

Jumping Sharply from its Lead-in, "Private Practice" Returns to Win Wednesday's 9pm Hour, and Ranks as the Night's No. 1 TV Show in Adults 18-34 and Key Women

"Dirty Sexy Money" Dominates its Sophomore Drama Time-Period Competitor, NBC's "Lipstick Jungle," and Paces Ahead of Where it Finished Last Year

For the 2nd Week in a Row, "Ugly Betty" Holds Second to "Survivor" in Viewers and Wins its Time Slot with its Key Women 18-34 Audience

ABC Wins Saturday Evening Among Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, as "Saturday Night Football" Stands as Night's No. 1 TV Show on Both Counts

Opposite CBS' Big NFL Overrun Sunday at 7pm, ABC's 19th Season Premiere of "America's Funniest Home Videos" Draws the Series' Largest Audience in 8 Months

"Home Edition" is Up from its Season Premiere in Adults 18-49, Key Men and Kids

For the 2nd Straight Week, "Desperate Housewives" Tops NBC's "Sunday Night Football" in its Sunday Time Slot and Towers Above CBS' "Cold Case"

ABC's "Brothers & Sisters" Defeats its CBS Drama Competition in Sunday's 10pm Hour by 31% in Adults 18-49, Dominating the Slot Across the Key Women Demos

WEEK No. 2:

Despite having "Grey's Anatomy" preempted for the VP Debate on Thursday, ABC earned second place for the week in Total Viewers (9.2 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.8/8-tie). The Net ranked No. 1 for the 2nd week in a row with Women 18-34 (2.8/8) and Women 18-49 (3.5/9-tie).

Rankings: On an atypical week which included the VP Debate on Thursday, ABC aired 5 of the week's Top 20 TV programs in Adults 18-49, including the No. 1 show with "Desperate Housewives": "Desperate Housewives" � No. 1, "Dancing with the Stars" � No. 8, "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" � No. 15, "Brothers & Sisters" � No. 17 and "DWTS Results" � No. 19. The Net claimed 3 of the Top 5 most-watched television shows, delivering the No. 1 show overall with "DWTS": "Dancing with the Stars" � No. 1, "Desperate Housewives" � No. 4 and "DWTS Results" � No. 5. In fact it was the 2nd week in a row for ABC to claim the No. 1 TV programs in both Total Viewers and Adults 18-49.

A note about increasing DVR penetration and year-to-year rating comparisons: Year-to-year rating comparisons based on the Live + Same Day data stream are distorted by the level of DVR penetration in the Nielsen sample, which has jumped up to 28% currently, from 20% at the same point in 2007. More viewers are watching shows on their own timetables, which may not be reflected in the overnight next day numbers. The only truly valid year-to-year comparison would be one based on the Live + 7 Day metric, once those stats are released by Nielsen.

Monday

For the second week in a row, ABC stood as the most-watched TV network on Monday, outperforming second-place CBS by 4.1 million viewers (15.5 million vs. 11.4 million). ABC also took the top spot on Monday night among Women 18-49 (5.1/12) and Women 25-54 (6.8/15).

"Dancing with the Stars" (8:00-10:01 p.m.)

Monday's most-watched program for the second week running, ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" dominated in its 2-hour time period, defeating second-place CBS by 8.9 million viewers (18.9 million vs. 10.0 million) and by 19% in Adults 18-49 (4.4/11 vs. 3.7/9). "DWTS" also qualified as Monday's No. 1 show in Women 18-49 (6.3/15) and Women 25-54 (8.8/18)

"Boston Legal" (10:01-11:00 p.m.)

ABC's "Boston Legal" beat NBC's special preview of "Life" by 2.9 million viewers (8.6 million vs. 6.9 million). In addition, the ABC drama posted an 8% increase over the prior week among Adults 18-34 (1.4/4 vs. 1.3/3).

Tuesday

"Opportunity Knocks" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)

Building audience for ABC in the 8 o'clock hour opposite established series including Fox's "House," NBC's "Biggest Loser" and CBS' "NCIS," ABC's "Opportunity Knocks" retained 100% of its week-ago debut young adult audience (AD18-34 � 1.4/5 and AD18-49 � 1.8/5) and grew from its premiere across each of the key men demographics: M18-34 (1.1/4 vs. 0.9/3), M18-49 (1.4/4 vs. 1.2/4) and M25-54 (1.6/4 vs. 1.5/4). From start to finish, the ABC unscripted series gained 14% in Total Viewers (5.6 million to 6.4 million) and 11% in Adults 18-49 (1.7/5 to 1.9/5).

"Dancing with the Stars Results" (9:00-10:01 p.m.)

Jumping from its lead-in by 9.5 million viewers and by 106% in Adults 18-49, ABC's "Dancing with the Stars Results" ranked No. 1 in the 9 o'clock hour in Total Viewers (15.5 million-tie), Women 18-49 (4.9/12) and Women 25-54 (6.3/14). The show took second with Adults 18-49 (3.7/9). "DWTS Results" beat out its unscripted competition in the time period, NBC's second hour of a 2-hour "The Biggest Loser: Families," by 7.5 million viewers and by 9% in Adults 18-49 ("Loser" = 8.0 million and 3.4/9). Additionally, broad-appealing "DWTS" qualified as Tuesday's highest-rated broadcast program with Kids 2-11 (1.9/8). Actress, model and reality television star Kim Kardashian was the third dancer to leave the competition this season.

Wednesday

Returning with its Wednesday night drama lineup to originals for the first time in 10 months (resulting from the disruption caused by the writers' strike), ABC took second place to CBS on the night among Adults 18-49 (2.6/7-tie), while ranking No. 1 on the night with Adults 18-34 (2.4/7) and Women 18-34 (3.4/9). In fact the Net posted its best Wednesday numbers since early January (1/9/08) in Adults 18-34 and Women 18-34.

"Pushing Daisies" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)

On its return to the time period, in its first original telecast since 12/12/07, ABC's "Pushing Daisies" took second place in its time period with Women 18-49 and Women 25-54, topping NBC's Week 2 of "Knight Rider" by wide margins during the 8 o'clock hour across the Women demos: W18-34 +39% (2.5/7 vs. 1.8/5), W18-49 +27% (2.8/7 vs. 2.2/6) and W25-54 +26% (3.4/8 vs. 2.7/7). "Daisies" grew its Adult 18-34 audience from start to finish by 12% (1.7/6 to 1.9/6).

"Private Practice" (9:00-10:01 p.m.)

Building sharply on its lead-in and gaining audience during the 9 o'clock hour, opposite competition including CBS' "Criminal Minds" and the season finale of NBC's "America's Got Talent," the sophomore season opener of "Private Practice" dominated its time slot and stood as Wednesday's No. 1 TV program in Adults 18-34 (3.4/10) and key women: W18-34 (5.2/13) and W18-49 (4.9/12-tie).

� "Private Practice" generated ABC's biggest audience (8.2 million) and highest Adult 18-49 rating (3.3/8) in the time period in 8 months � since 2/27/08. Additionally, the series posted its top Women 18-34 number since mid November (11/14/07), topping its final 2 original airings last season.

"Dirty Sexy Money" (10:01-11:00 p.m.)

In the final hour of the night opposite CBS' veteran drama "C.S.I.: NY" and NBC's "Lipstick Jungle," "Dirty Sexy Money" took a solid second in its time period, beating its sophomore drama competition ("Lipstick Jungle") by 1.7 million viewers (7.0 million vs. 5.3 million) and by 20% in Adults 18-49 (2.4/7 vs. 2.0/5).

� "Dirty Sexy Money" finished ahead of where it left off in its freshman season last December, topping its most recent original telecast in both Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 (12/5/07 � 6.7 million and 2.3/6).

Thursday

With "Ugly Betty" and ABC News' post-Vice Presidential Debate analysis, ABC took second place among the broadcasters on an atypical Thursday in Total Viewers (8.7 million) and ranked No. 1 overall with Women 18-34 (3.4/10). "Grey's Anatomy" was preempted for the Debate.

"Ugly Betty" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)

From 8:00-9:00 p.m. ABC's "Ugly Betty" held second to "Survivor: Gabon" in Total Viewers (8.3 million). For the 2nd week in a row, "Betty" ranked No. 1 in its time period with Women 18-34 (3.5/10).

"Vote 2008: Analysis-THU" (10:37-11:00 p.m.)

From 10:37-11:00 p.m. ET, like with the Presidential Debate the previous Friday, ABC News was once again the top draw among the broadcast networks with its post-debate coverage. In Total Viewers, ABC's "Vote 2008: Analysis-THU" (9.8 million) tied post-debate analysis on NBC (9.8 million) and outdrew CBS by 1.8 million viewers (8.0 million).

Friday

Building audience in each hour of the evening with "Wife Swap," "Supernanny" and "20/20," ABC took second place among the broadcast networks on the opening Friday of the season among Adults 18-49 (1.6/5).

"Wife Swap" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)

Moving to a new night, ABC's season premiere of "Wife Swap" defeated its NBC unscripted competition in the time period, "Toughest Jobs," by 9% in Total Viewers (3.7 million vs. 3.4 million) and by 30% in Adults 18-49 (1.3/5 vs. 1.0/3).

"Supernanny" (9:00-10:00 p.m.)

Building on its lead-in by 11% in Total Viewers (4.2 million vs. 3.8 million) and by 15% in Adults 18-49 (1.5/5 vs. 1.3/5), the season opener "Supernanny" on its new night bested Fox's time period regular "Don't Forget the Lyrics" by 7% in Adults 18-49 (1.5/5 vs. 1.4/4).

"20/20" (10:00-11:00 p.m.)

Surging by 2.6 million viewers and by 27% in young adults from its lead-in, ABC News' "20/20" featuring the second of two hour-long segments with Diane Sawyer examining the personal crises, family struggles and defining events that have shaped the Presidential candidates, took second place during the 10 o'clock hour in Total Viewers (6.8 million) and Adults 25-54 (2.3/7). Also in the hour, the ABC newsmagazine defeated NBC's third-place sophomore-season opener of "Life" by 1.3 million viewers (6.8 million vs. 5.5 million) and by 12% in Adults 18-49 (1.9/6 vs. 1.7/5).

� "20/20" was up over its most-recent telecast in the hour (9/19/08) by 1.0 million viewers, by 27% in Adults 18-49 and by 15% in Adults 25-54 (5.8 million, 1.5/5 in AD18-49 and 2.0/6 in AD25-54).

Saturday

"Saturday Night Football: USC vs. Oregon and Ohio State vs. Wisconsin" (8:00-11:00 p.m.)

ABC's "Saturday Night Football," with games featuring USC vs. Oregon and Virginia Tech vs. Nebraska, took the net to No. 1 on Saturday prime in Total Viewers (6.6 million) and across each of the key adult demographics [Adults 18-34 (1.7/7), Adults 18-49 (2.0/7) and Adults 25-54 (2.4/7)] for the 2nd time in the last 4 weeks. In fact "Saturday Night Football" stood as the night's No. 1 TV program with both Total Viewers (6.7 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.1/7).

Sunday

Competing against NBC's "NFL Sunday Night Football" on the night (Steelers-Jaguars) and CBS with another highly-rated NFL primetime overrun into the 7 o'clock hour, ABC took second place on Sunday among Adults 18-49 (4.1/10) and, for the 2nd straight week, the Network won the night across all key women demos: W18-34 (4.3/12), W18-49 (5.4/13) and W25-54 (6.0/14).

� For the 2nd consecutive week, ABC's "Desperate Housewives" qualified as Sunday Night's No. 1 TV program among Adults 18-49 and the most-watched entertainment show overall.

"America's Funniest Home Videos" (7:00-8:00 p.m.)

The top entertainment program in the 7 o'clock hour and placing second only to CBS with its big NFL overrun, ABC's "America's Funniest Home Videos" opened its 19th TV Season on an impressive note. "AFV" was up from its year-ago season opener in Total Viewers (+5% - 8.9 million vs. 8.5 million) and held even among Adults 18-49 (2.6/8).

� "Funniest Home Videos" attracted the series largest audience in nearly 8 months and its highest Adult 18-49 rating in 7 months � since 2/10/08 and 3/2/08, respectively.

"Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)

Building sharply on its lead-in, "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" ranked as the No. 1 entertainment program during the 8 o'clock hour with Total Viewers (11.8 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.9/10), besting competition on CBS ("Amazing Race") and Fox ("The Simpsons"/"King of the Hill"). The wide-appealing ABC unscripted series was by far Sunday's No. broadcast program with Kids 2-11 (2.7/9).

� "Home Edition" was up from its week-ago season premiere in Adults 18-49, Men 18-49, Men 18-34 and Kids 2-11.

"Desperate Housewives" (9:00-10:01 p.m.)

For the 2nd consecutive week, ABC's "Desperate Housewives" jumped to the top of 9 o'clock hour in Total Viewers (15.7 million) and Adults 18-49 (5.8/13), beating NBC's "Sunday Night Football" (15.0 million and 5.7/13) and towering over CBS in the time period ("Amazing Race"/"Cold Case" = 10.7 million and 3.0/7).

"Brothers & Sisters" (10:01-11:00 p.m.)

ABC's "Brothers & Sisters" dominated its CBS drama competition in the 10 o'clock hour among Adults 18-49, leading the combo of "Cold Case and "The Unit" by 31% in Adults 18-49 (3.8/9 vs. 2.9/7), and ranked No. 1 in the hour over NBC's "Sunday Night Football" across each of the key women demographics: W18-34 (5.0/13), W18-49 (5.7/14) and W25-54 (6.1/14).

Source: Nielsen Media Research (National Live+Same Day Program Ratings), week of 9/29/08, unless stated otherwise.