HispanicBusiness

Millions of Hispanic households tuned in to watch America's most popular show "American Idol" and vote for their favorite aspiring singing diva, according to figures released by the Nielsen Media Group for the week of March 10-16, 2008.

Weak performances of classic Beetles songs by David Archuleta and Kristy Lee Cook did nothing to hurt the show, which again grabbed top spots in the Nielsen ratings. The musical competition earned ratings of 6.9 and 6.8 among Hispanic viewers and was watched by 1,401,000.

Also in the top 10 were Fox network's reality shows "America's Most Wanted" and "Moment of Truth." Both programs specialize in live broadcasts of wrongdoers being tracked down, whether they are kidnappers and thugs or simply cheating boyfriends. "America's Most Wanted" took the number eight spot and gained 621,000 Hispanic viewers, while "Moment of Truth" tied for the 10th most-watched show with an audience of 524,000.

The top-rated shows in Spanish for this week closely matched the most popular shows for the prior week. The telenovela "Al Diablo con Guapos" grabbed the most viewers again with a rating of 21.3 and attracted on average 2,582,000 viewers for its nightly broadcast. Al Diablo was closely followed by Univision's "Don Francisco Presenta," the hour-long interview show hosted by TV superstar Don Francisco (Mario Kreutzberger). "Don Francisco" was seen by 2,505, 00 viewers. Other telenovelas in the top ten included "Cristina," "Yo Amo Juan Querendon," and "Passion," with its ardent love story set in colonial Mexico.

The following lists are TV ratings based on Hispanic viewership. Nielsen's ratings include viewers who watched the program while it aired and those who viewed the shows via digital video recorder within 24 hours of their airing. Nielsen says that the Hispanic TV audience represents more than 11.63 million television households in the United States. The rating is equivalent to the percentage of households or persons watching a TV program during the average minute.

Top 10 English-Language Shows And Ratings (March 10-16, 2008)
1. American Idol -- Wednesday (Fox) 6.9
2. American Idol -- Tuesday (Fox) 6.8
3. Friday Night Smackdown -- Friday (CW) 4.3
4. Lost -- Thursday (ABC) 3.7
5. Family Guy -- Sunday (FOX) 3.6
6. Medium -- Monday (NBC) 3.6
7. Deal Or No Deal -- Monday (NBC) 3.5
8. America's Most Wanted: America Fights Back -- Saturday (FOX) 3.5
9. Extreme Makeover: Home Edition -- Sunday (ABC) 3.4
10 (tie). Moment of Truth -- Wednesday (FOX) 3.3
10 (tie). Law and Order: SVU -- Sunday NBC) 3.3

Top 10 Spanish-Language Shows And Their Ratings (March 10-16, 2008)
1. Al Diablo con Guapos -- Five-Night Avg. (Univision) 21.3
2. Don Francisco Presenta -- Wednesday (Univision) 20.6
3. Cristina -- Monday (Univision) 17.4
4. Pasion -- Five-Night Avg. (Univision) 16.7
5. Yo Amo Juan Querendon -- Five-Night Avg. (Univision) 14.3
6. Nuestra Belleza -- Friday (Univision) 14.0
7. Sabado Gigante -- Saturday (Univision) 13.8
8. Aqui Y Ahora -- Tuesday (Univision) 13.1
9. Amas Casa Desesperads -- Thursday (Univision) 12.1
10. Hora Pico -- Sunday (Univision) 9.7