We were talking the other day about job cuts — more specifically about who would be next to feel the axe blade. We’d seen big cuts at Viacom, Omnicom, Warner Brothers and Time Inc, and, you know, it obviously didn’t take a genius to figure more were coming.

The next day: A memo from AOL Chief Executive Randy Falco announces that the Internet unit of Time Warner will cut 700 jobs, or about 10 percent of its workforce;  Reader’s Digest says it will cut 8 percent of its staff.

And now we come to Walt Disney Co, which is cutting about 5 percent of its workforce through a combination of 200 layoffs and a job freeze on another 200 positions.

“After months of making hard decisions across our businesses to help us adjust to a weakening economy, we’re now faced with the harsh reality of having to eliminate jobs in some areas,” Anne Sweeney, co-chair of Disney-Media Networks and president of Disney-ABC Television, said in a memo sent to workers and obtained by Reuters.

So now it’s worth asking yet again: Who is next?

Could it be News Corp? Portfolio reports that The Wall Street Journal’s newsroom “is due to undergo another round of personnel cuts late next week. It’s unclear exactly how many employees will be affected, but two sources put the number of people being targeted at 50.”

And FishBowlNY reports that the “entire staff of Page Six Magazine will be packing up their desks on the heels of today’s announcement that the weekly New York Post insert would move to a quarterly publication schedule.”

Keep an eye on:

• Dell Inc had a team working on developing a cellphone for more than a year and is now preparing to roll one out as early as next month, sources tell The Wall Street Journal (WSJ.com) 
• Dating A Banker Anonymous (http://dabagirls.wordpress.com), a blog started by two New Yorkers, has made waves on the blogosphere this week with its tales of woe (Reuters)
• Lack of confidence among clients is hitting the Chinese advertising market, clouding the outlook for revenue growth this year, the head of Internet media firm Sina Corp said in Davos (Reuters)

(Photo: Reuters)

Since we’re coming up on year’s end, it’s worth a quick review of the television season so far. It has stunk. There. That’s about all you need to know.

Don’t take our word for it, look at the weekly Nielsen numbers that came out yesterday. The lone exception is CBS, which continues to hold up relatively well in the face of all the challenges facing the TV market.

Here’s the Hollywood Reporter’s roundup:

Following its 12th consecutive weekly victory in total viewers, CBS became the first major broadcast network this season to move into positive year-to-year territory since premiere week.

Through Dec. 21, CBS has averaged 12 million viewers, up 1% from last year. NBC, ABC and Fox are each down 9%.

All of the Big Four are still in the red in the adults 18-49 demo, with CBS closest to breaking even at minus 3%.

As we all know by now, everything will probably change on January 13, when American Idol returns to Fox. Perhaps that — or the introduction of midseason shows — will give ratings a broad boost. If not, it’s going to be a long cold winter in the TV business.

Keep an eye on:

• As growth in online advertising slows, some Internet companies are easing the restrictions they impose on the categories and formats of advertising they will accept (WSJ.com)
• FedEx is pulling out of the Super Bowl due to budget worries amid the downturn (NY Post)
• China’s broadcasting watchdog has ordered a crackdown on low-brow confessional talk shows as part of a campaign against base entertainment (Reuters)

(Photo: Reuters)

Are people going to watch more TV because they’ve no money to go out? According to media buying and planning agency MPG — a subsidiary of Havas, the world’s sixth-largest ad firm — the answer is no, unless the TV networks come up with better shows.

“That’s inventory for us, that’s our supply,” MPG Chief Operating Officer Steve Lanzano told the Reuters Media Summit in New York. “The thing is, there are no hit shows out there on the big networks,” he added. “And if there’s no supply in the marketplace, that just makes it harder and harder for us.”

With the economy seizing up and people seeking more stay-at-home entertainment, this could be the perfect time for the big networks to hook people on to some new shows and boost ratings. That would bring in advertising revenue at a time when many advertisers are scaling back spending.

But the networks don’t seem quite up for it yet, Lanzano said. ”"They need hits and nobody has them right now.”

Fox, Lanzano said, was a bit edgier than the others. “Clearly, they have these must-see shows that they’ve been able to promote.”

Meanwhile, CBS — which probably has the largest number of total viewers — could do with some younger programming, Lanzano said. “Have they been able to lower their age a bit?”

As for NBC, “they’ve been fortunate because of Sarah Palin.” Shows like 30 Rock and of course, SNL, have gotten a boost because of Tina Fey’s turn as the former Republican vice-presidential candidate, but with Jay Leno going off the air soon, they might be stuck looking around for another winner.

ABC has done well with younger viewers, but still needs a big audience winner to bring home the big bucks, Lanzano said.

Only the cable channels have met with some success in churning out hit shows, he said. “To some degree you see the breakout hits are on the HBOs and the Showtimes because their hands are not tied.” Cable channels also give their shows more time to grow, unlike the networks, which try too many different things in hopes of a quick hit.

First President-Elect Barack Obama sparked a run on newspapers, and now his appearance on 60 Minutes helped deliver CBS the largest weekly audience of any network this season. The news program, featuring Obama’s first post-election interview, drew more than 25 million viewers, the biggest number since January 1999.

Not surprisingly, that helped CBS win the week in total viewers and in the 18-49 year-old category.  Season-to-date, CBS is tops in total viewers, and essentially tied with ABC for the 18-49 crowd. Here are the Nielsen figures for the week ending Nov 16::

Total Viewers (’000, change from 2007-08)

CBS 12,314, +3 percent

ABC, 10,467, +1 percent

NBC, 7,742, -6 percent

Fox, 6,782, -21 percent

Adults 18-49 (ratings, change from 2007-08)

CBS, 3.3, no change

ABC, 3.1, -9 percent

NBC, 2.9, -6 percent

Fox, 2.7, -21 percent

Week’s Top shows for Adults 18-49 (network, rating)

Sunday Night Football, NBC, 7.4

60 Minutes, CBS, 6.3

Desperate Housewives, ABC, 6.2

Grey’s Anatomy, ABC, 5.7

House, Fox, 5.5

CSI, CBS, 5.1

CMA Awards, ABC, 5.0

Two And A Half Men, CBS, 4.9

Sunday Night NFL Pre-Kick, NBC, 4.6

Dancing With the Stars, ABC, 4.2

Family Guy, Fox, 4.2

How I Met Your Mother, CBS, 4.2

(Photo: Reuters)

What you — and everyone else –  watched on TV was the election, apparently. More than 71 million Americans tuned in to see the end of the presidential campaign, and coverage on ABC and NBC ranked among the top 10 shows during primetime last week, according to the latest Nielsen numbers.

Election night, combined with Sunday night football, left little room in the top 10 shows for regularly scheduled dramas and comedies. But it should be noted that ABC managed to squeeze in the top two rated dramas among 18 to 49 year-olds, Grey’s Anatomy and Desperate Housewives. ABC and NBC shared honors for the highest ratings among the 18-49 crowd for the week.

Total Viewers (’000)

CBS 11,040

ABC 10,400

NBC 8,900

Fox 5,870

Adults 18-49 (ratings)

ABC 3.2

NBC 3.2

CBS 3.0

Fox 2.3

Week’s Top Shows for Adults 18-49 (network, rating)

Sunday Night Football, NBC, 6.7

Grey’s Anatomy, ABC, 6.0

Desperate Housewives, ABC 5.9

SNL Presidential Bash ‘08, NBC 5.6

CSI, CBS 5.1

Vote 2008, ABC 4.9

Two and a Half Men, CBS 4.6

Decision ‘08, NBC, 4.5

Sunday Night NFL Pre-Kick, NBC, 4.3

The Office, NBC, 4.3

It was all about sports last week as the World Series and a couple of big football games ranked among the most-watched prime-time shows. Fox was the big winner, according the the latest Nielsen figures.

With the World Series Game 5, the hospital drama “House,” and the comedies “The Simpsons” and “Family Guy,” Fox brought in the highest ratings among adults 18-49 for the week ending Nov 2. Year over year, Fox boosted its ratings last week by 26 percent.  Just wait until ”American Idol” and “24″ return.

Total Viewers (’000, change from 2007-08)

CBS 11,384, down 8 percent

ABC 10,140, down 11 percent

Fox 9,527, up 36 percent

NBC 7,529, down 6 percent

Adults 18-49 (ratings, change from 2007-08)

Fox 3.4, up 26 percent

ABC 3.1, down 14 percent

NBC, 2.8, down 7 percent

CBS, 2.8 down 22 percent

Week’s Top Shows for Adults 18-49 (network, rating)

World Series Game 5, Fox 6.2

Sunday Night Football, NBC 6.2

The Simpsons, Fox 6.2

Desperate Housewives, ABC 5.8

Grey’s Anatomy, ABC 5.7

House, Fox 5.4

Family Guy, Fox 5.1

Office, NBC 4.8

CBS, CBS 4.8

The OT, Fox 4.4

Saturday Night Football, ABC 4.4

Helped by the World Series, Fox last week scored five of the top 10 shows among 18-49 year-olds. That’s the good news. The bad news is that Fox ratings were nonethless down 22 percent for the week, and are down 17 percent year-to-date, according to the latest Nielsen data.

Fox isn’t alone. Season-to-date ratings for NBC and ABC are down similar amounts. That leaves CBS on top. But even CBS is down 6 percent, so it’s dubious honor.

Total Viewers (’000, change from 2007-08)

CBS 11,351, up 2 percent

Fox, 10,875, down 21 percent

ABC 9,958, down 11 percent

NBC 6,098, down 13 percent

Adults 18-49 (rating, change from 2007-08)

Fox 3.6, down 22 percent

CBS 3.0, no change

ABC 3.0, down 19 percent

NBC 2.2, down 15 percent

Week’s Top Shows for Adults 18-49 (network, rating)

Desperate Housewives, ABC 5.8

House, Fox, 5.6

CSI, CBS 5.5

Grey’s Anatomy, ABC 5.4

Two and a Half Men, CBS 5.1

Fox World Series Game 4, Fox 5.1

The OT, Fox 5.0

Fox World Series Game 1, Fox 4.8

Fox World Series Game 4-Pre, Fox, 4.4

Survivor Gabon, CBS, 4.4

(Photo: Reuters)

No doubt about it, the financial crisis has been tough on the media business. Just ask Sumner Redstone, the folks over at the Associated Press, or anyone on Madison Avenue.

Then there are some of the poorly rated television shows to consider… The Hollywood Reporter writes that thanks to the economic downturn, the broadcast networks could play it safe and order full-seasons of some low-rated programs rather than replace them with new series.

There are a number of reasons for this, one of which is that it costs money to order and market a new series.

But, the article points out, the “most obvious reasons for the pickups are that many series this fall are doing poorly, and these shows are performing among the best of the worst. Networks are loath to exit the fall without at least one series to tout as a success. Plus, the writers strike, as Rash noted, has delayed quality mid-season replacements. And with ratings declining overall because of increasing DVR penetration and audience erosion to cable networks and the Internet, the bar for success keeps being lowered.”

So even if your retirement savings isn’t what it used to be, at least you’ll be able to enjoy “Knight Rider” for a while longer.

Keep an eye on:

• Chinese media firm Sohu.com Inc’s third-quarter profit more than quadrupled, helped by higher revenue, and forecast fourth-quarter results above analysts’ estimates (Reuters)
• Sony Corp Chief Executive Howard Stringer said the electronics maker needs to cut fixed costs to weather a downturn in demand and a surge in the yen that forced it to slash its profit forecasts last week (Reuters)
• The Star-Ledger, New Jersey’s largest newspaper, will cut its newsroom staff about 40 percent by year’s end, one of the largest reductions in a single move by a major American paper (NY Times)

(Photo: Reuters)

It was another solid week for CBS, which has become a regular at the top of the TV ratings race so far this season, according to the latest figures from Nielsen.

But while CBS was the most-watched network and brought in the most 18-49 year-olds, it was ABC’s soapy dramas that were the most popular individual shows. Sexy doctors and sexy housewives, pretty bankable as ratings winners.

Total Viewers (’000, change from 2007-08)

CBS 11,472, up 4 percent

NBC 7,207, down 13 percent

ABC 9,147, down 14 percent

Fox, 6,727, down 43 percent

Adults 18-49 (rating, change from 2007-08)

CBS 3.2, up 7 percent

NBC 2.7, down 13 percent

ABC 2.8, down 20 percent

Fox 2.5, down 36 percent

Week’s Top Shows for Adults 18-49 (network, rating)

Grey’s Anatomy (ABC, 5.9)

Desperate Housewives (ABC, 5.7)

Two and a Half Men (CBS 5.3)

House (Fox, 5.3)

CSI (CBS, 5.2)

Family Guy (Fox, 4.7)

Heroes (NBC, 4.3)

The Office (NBC, 4.3)

SNL: Weekend Update (NBC, 4.2)

Survivor: Gabon (CBS, 4.2)

(Photo: Reuters)

It was a big week in the TV world for CBS, according to the latest Nielsen data.

Its live plus same day ratings for the week ending October 12, the third week of the new TV season, are below. As you can see, CBS won in total viewers, adults aged 18-49, and had the top show of the week in CSI.

TOTAL VIEWERS (Average ratings/Audience)
CBS 3.8/11.0 million
ABC 3.3/9.6 million
Fox 2.7/8.0 million
NBC 2.4/7.0 million

ADULTS 18-49 (Average rating/Audience)
CBS 3.2/4.2 million
ABC 3.0/3.9 million
Fox 2.7/3.6 million
NBC 2.7/3.5 million

WEEK’S TOP SHOWS, ADULTS 18-49 (Network, Rating)
1.    CSI (CBS 7.1)
2.    Desperate Housewives (ABC 5.9)
3.    Grey’s Anatomy-Thursday 9pm (ABC, 5.6)
4.    OT, The (FOX, 5.4)
5.    NBC Sunday Night Football (NBC, 5.2)
6.    Two and a Half Men (CBS, 5.1)
6.    SNL: Weekend Update 10/9 (NBC, 5.1)
8.    Office (NBC, 4.8)
9.    Survivor: Gabon (CBS, 4.4)
10.  Dancing With The Stars (ABC, 4.3)
10.  Criminal Minds (CBS, 4.3)
10.  CSI: NY (CBS, 4.3)

(Photo: Reuters)