Oscar Ratings A Dud

(AP)  The Oscars are a ratings dud. Nielsen Media Research says preliminary ratings for the 80th annual Academy Awards telecast are 14 percent lower than the least-watched ceremony ever.

Nielsen said Monday that overnight ratings are also 21 percent lower than last year, when "The Departed" was named best picture.

The least-watched Oscars ceremony ever was in 2003, when there were 33 million viewers.

Nielsen has no estimate yet on how many people watched Sunday night, but based on ratings from the nation's biggest markets, the Oscars will be hard-pressed to avoid an ignominious record.

The show had a 21.9 rating and 33 share.

[dylanxxv]

Who cares...It''s a self serving show for them to pat each other on the back while they get thousands of dollars worth of free stuff that us second rate peons have to pay big bucks for...

[keithle1]

Maybe they just have to be cruel & hard. Limit it to the major categories. Those are what viewers care about. The rest is for movie industry people & their families. Maybe hardcore film buffs.

The public don''t care what a cinematographer has to say about the Oscar he''s won. Unless there is martial arts in the foreign language film, most Americans don''t want to read subtitles. Try to make it two hours instead of four. Make it a pleasure to watch instead of a test of endurance.

I have a funny feeling that next year''s ceremony will be EXACTLY like this year''s.

[keithle1]

"The lines they give participants to read are excruciating - and most of them look embarrassed to be reading them."

You got that right, oleander8.

It makes my toes curl. Especially when they flub their line like poor old Helen Mirren did. Why don''t they just let them ad lib something or heck, let them get right to the point? Anything to move the proceedings along. The cutesy scripted banter between a male & female presenter makes me wanna puke. Ugh.

If this doesn''t motivate the Academy Awards
powers-that-be to chuck it all & start fresh then nothing will.

I wonder how many female viewers tuned out after the Red Carpet pre-Oscars show?

[kevzgrl]

rafterman1, you are absolutely right. If the Oscar went to the movie that had the best story, characters and actors, the best reviews and word of mouth, it would have been Juno hands down. I have gone to see it twice, and when it comes out on DVD I will buy it and watch it again and again - it was THAT good. I could count the number of movies I am willing to watch repeatedly on one hand, and have a finger or two left over. Juno was simply amazing - who wants to watch an awards show where the results are pretty much forgone - it will go to a violent drama, not a comedy that had heart and soul to spare.

[bizzzz-2009]

That''s because movies are an escape anymore, they are an indoctrination process.
Keep it up Hollywood. I''m sure FORCING us to watch your ideological dribble and relentless violence is probably something you like to have happen. The fact of the matter is, we don''t have to. The reason we don''t choose to is that, as an industry, Hollywood has become a cheap piece of ***.

[westjime]

Who cares? Big deal? Amazing.. I found brintey spears had a personal account on MeetRich.com. It is a site for celebrities and millionaires to mingle. It''s said Charlie Sheen has found his love there last May.

[oleander8]

The lines they give participants to read are excruciating - and most of them look embarrassed to be reading them.

[samthetvcat]

PS I watch every year, I don''t know why - pretty dresses, some light-hearted comedy, some stars, some music . . . haven''t seen any of the movies except for Norbit, but whatever.

Can''t wait for Amazing Race to come back . . .

[samthetvcat]

What did you all think of Owen Wilson showing up? I''m so used to seeing him all smiley and jokey but now we know that was just a small part of who he is. I hope he is doing ok . . . Owen, we''re rooting for you!

[jerkeedoodle]

Hmmm,maybe a sign of people in this country getting smarter?Naw!