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THE RATINGS
R.I.P. JFK JR.
Wall-to-wall coverage of the Kennedy-Bessette crash caused a spike in the ratings for the three cable info networks. MSNBC and Fox News Channel both had their most-watched days ever on July 18, topping their reportage on Princess Diana's death and the Columbine High School shootings, and CNN drew more than five times its usual July audience. The JFK Jr. story didn't have such a dramatic impact on the viewership of network newsmags, however. While ABC's 20/20, CBS' 48 Hours, and NBC's Dateline devoted numerous hours to the topic, none of these programs topped a rerun of CBS' 60 Minutes (1st) featuring segments on gangster Anthony ''Gaspipe'' Casso, six jailed Iraqi dissidents, and Murphy Brown's Candice Bergen.
TOP 30 VIEWERS* LAST WEEK
1 14.1 60 MINUTES (R) CBS, Sunday, 7 p.m. 3 2 13.0 20/20 ABC, Wednesday, 10 p.m. 5 3 12.5 EVERYBODY LOVES RAYMOND (R) CBS, Monday, 9 p.m. 9 4 11.8 FRASIER (R) NBC, Thursday, 9:30 p.m. -- 5 11.7 BECKER (R) CBS, Monday, 9:30 p.m. 13 11.7 TOUCHED BY AN ANGEL (R) CBS, Sunday, 8 p.m. 15 7 11.1 48 HOURS CBS, Monday, 10 p.m. 65 8 10.8 FRASIER (R) NBC, Thursday, 9 p.m. 9 9 10.7 20/20 ABC, Sunday, 9 p.m. 4 10.7 WALKER, TEXAS RANGER (R) CBS, Saturday, 10 p.m. 24 11 10.6 ER (R) NBC, Thursday, 10 p.m. 16 10.6 FRIENDS (R) NBC, Thursday, 8 p.m. 21 10.6 LAW & ORDER (R) NBC, Wednesday, 10 p.m. 18 14 10.5 20/20 ABC, Friday, 10 p.m. 6 15 10.4 60 MINUTES II CBS, Tuesday, 9 p.m. 28 16 10.3 DATELINE NBC NBC, Wednesday, 8 p.m. 19 10.3 WORLD'S MOST AMAZING VIDEOS (R) NBC, Wednesday, 9 p.m. 23 18 10.0 DATELINE NBC NBC, Tuesday, 10 p.m. 14 19 9.7 BECKER (R) CBS, Monday, 8:30 p.m. -- 9.7 JAG (R) CBS, Tuesday, 8 p.m. 49 21 9.5 THE PRACTICE (R) ABC, Sunday, 10 p.m. 25 22 9.4 MOVIE: THE ARRIVAL NBC, Sunday, 9 p.m. -- 9.4 WHOSE LINE IS IT ANYWAY? (R) ABC, Wednesday, 9:30 p.m. 25 24 9.3 THE KING OF QUEENS (R) CBS, Monday, 8 p.m. 46 25 9.1 DHARMA & GREG (R) ABC, Tuesday, 9 p.m. -- 9.1 MOVIE: SEDUCTION IN A SMALL TOWN (R) ABC, Monday, 9 p.m. -- 27 9.0 DATELINE NBC NBC, Friday, 9 p.m. 11 9.0 JESSE (R) NBC, Thursday, 8:30 p.m. 39 29 8.9 DIAGNOSIS MURDER (R) CBS, Thursday, 9 p.m. 39 8.9 48 HOURS (R) CBS, Tuesday, 10 p.m. 74 8.9 NASH BRIDGES (R) CBS, Friday, 10 p.m. 30 8.9 WILL & GRACE (R) NBC, Tuesday, 9:30 p.m. 32
*IN MILLIONS WEEK OF JULY 19-25 (R) RERUN SOURCE: NIELSEN MEDIA RESEARCH
