Channel 5 sweeps the competition

WCVB-TV (Channel 5) beat its competition in total viewers in every time period during the television industry's important February sweeps period, the station reported yesterday, including at 11 p.m., when WHDH-TV (Channel 7) has long been a sweeps winner.

"Everybody is very excited about the book," said Bill Fine , president and general manager of WCVB. "This is an extremely competitive market. To have viewers select us as their preferred station from morning until night is quite an achievement."

WFXT-TV (Channel 25) also had news to crow about yesterday. Its 10 p.m. newscast attracted more viewers during sweeps than any of its late-night competitors. "Fox25 News at 10" had an average of 238,000 total viewers. Its competitor, WLVI-TV's (Channel 56) "7 News at 10," attracted just 50,000 viewers for its first sweep since the Tribune Company sold the CW56 to Sunbeam Television Corp. last year. At 11 p.m., WCVB had 220,700 viewers, WHDH had 199,900 viewers, and WBZ-TV (Channel 4) had 178,000 viewers.

"This sweep set a new record for the highest-rated performance the station has ever had," said Gregg Kelley, WFXT's general manager and vice president. Kelley downplayed the impact of "American Idol" as a lead-in. " 'Idol' has been on for five years now. Our growth is more reflective of viewers appreciating the value of our newscast."

Mike Carson, vice president and general manager of WHDH and WLVI, said he has "very realistic expectations" about WLVI's progress at 10 p.m., especially considering WLVI is an affiliate of the fledgling CW network.

"A lot of people don't know we're available yet," he said. "But the product looks great. . . . It will be next fall before we start seeing real growth probably."

Carson said he was also "very pleased" with WHDH's performance. Channel 7 finished second in many periods, including at 6 p.m. (184,100 viewers vs. Channel 5's 220,000 viewers) and 5 a.m. (29,000 viewers vs. Channel 5's 57,400 viewers).

WBZ, which has struggled for years to improve its ratings, reported growth in many time periods, although its overall rankings were mostly in third place. It did place second at 5 a.m. behind Channel 5 (45,000 viewers vs. Channel 5's 57,400), which was a 36 percent increase from last year. It was in third place at 5 p.m. with 110,000 viewers (a 25 percent increase from last year) compared to Channel 5's 215,300 viewers and Channel 7's 124,000 viewers.

In a statement, WBZ president and general manager Ed Piette said he was "encouraged" by the station's overall growth from a year ago.