Cbs’ Announcement Premature

Coming from a television show renowned for its journalistic rigor and attention to detail, last week’s announcement about “60 Minutes” was a little, well, odd.

CBS said the venerable newsmagazine, whose tick-tick-ticking stopwatch alone draws beads of sweat to the foreheads of newsmakers, would finish among the year’s Top 10 shows in the Nielsen Media Research ratings for the 20th year in a row.

Only Lucille Ball’s 10-year streak for two different comedies came closer, the network boasted, adding that a party would be held next month to toast the newsmagazine’s two-decade streak.

There’s just one problem: It probably ain’t going to happen.

With a week to go in the season, which officially ends May 20, Nielsen’s season-to-date ranking lists “60 Minutes” at No. 11. It could pass CBS’s “Touched By an Angel” to move up a slot, but that’s not likely.

The network contends that the show now tied for fourth, NBC’s “Fired Up,” should not be considered in the season standings because it has run for only a limited time. Six episodes of “Fired Up” will have aired by the season’s end.

There’s general agreement within the television industry that programs airing six times or less are not considered part of the season rankings, says David Poltrack, head of research for CBS.

It galls Poltrack that seven of the top 10 shows are rated so high because, at least for a while, they have been part of NBC’s powerhouse Thursday night schedule. Along with “Fired Up,” those shows include the critically drubbed “Single Guy” and “The Naked Truth.”

“The logic is on our side,” Poltrack says. “For any rational person to get up there and say they believe ‘Fired Up,” which ran six times and may not even be renewed, should be considered a top program like ‘60 Minutes,’ ‘20/20’ or ‘NYPD Blue,’ they’d laugh at you.”

If there is such an industry standard that overlooks short-run series in the final Nielsen standings, NBC and ABC say they haven’t heard of it.

Neither has Nielsen, which omits specials from its season rankings but includes all regular series.

CBS’s claim is puzzling because there are so many legitimate accomplishments “60 Minutes” can brag about.

The show, which has won 50 Emmy Awards, has ranked at the top of Nielsen’s rankings in four seasons, touching on three different decades - first in 1979-80 and, mostly recently, in 1992-93.

Its average audience of around 20 million is just over half what it was at its peak in 1979-80, when nearly 39 million people watched each week.

But broadcast television in general has suffered audience erosion because of cable, and “60 Minutes” lost the advantage of having football games as a lead-in for half the season. And the show still has remained atop the highly competitive pack of newsmagazines this year.

“We’ll lick any kid in the house,” says Don Hewitt, the only executive producer “60 Minutes” has ever known. “We’ll lick any kid in television. We’re very competitive. We’re tough. The mystery to me is why at our age the fatigue factor has not set in.”