WBZ holds its ground in 11 p.m. news ratings
Playoff runs by Bruins, Celtics affect May sweeps
In the highly competitive May ratings period, WCVB-TV (Channel 5) captured the top ratings for most of the daytime newscasts while WBZ-TV (Channel 4) maintained its perch as the top-rated station at 11 p.m.
In fact, every station had something to boast about this month. WHDH-TV (Channel 7) won the morning news race; WFXT-TV (Channel 25) dominated at 10 p.m. and in overall late news; and WCVB finished first at noon, 5, and 6 p.m. The ratings, compiled by the Nielsen Co., were released yesterday for the four-week sweeps period that ended Wednesday night. Local stations use the ratings as a basis for setting advertising rates.
In prime time, some stations' ratings were down from a year ago, and heightened interest in local sports may have played a factor. In the past month, Boston viewers have been tuning in to NESN, ESPN, TNT, and Comcast Sports Network to watch not only the Red Sox and Major League Baseball, but the Bruins and Celtics in their playoff runs. Last week, games played by Boston teams, some of which spilled into the late news hour, represented five of the top 10 most-watched shows in Boston. The other top programs in that list were Fox's "American Idol" and CBS's "The Mentalist" and "CSI."
"This May, three Boston teams were playing on TV at the same time, and that affected news viewing overall," said Ro Dooley Webster, spokeswoman for WBZ, the local CBS affiliate.
At 5 a.m., NBC affiliate WHDH's news won with 47,400 total viewers, followed by WCVB with 41,800, WBZ with 36,600, and WFXT with 29,500. At 6 a.m., WHDH led again with 78,400 viewers, followed by WCVB with 75,000, WFXT with 73,900, and WBZ with 64,400. WCVB, the local ABC affiliate, had long ruled the morning race until last November's sweeps, when WHDH pulled ahead. Compared with last May at 6 a.m., WHDH improved in total viewers by 16 percent, while WCVB fell by 25 percent.
WHDH representatives were happy with their morning win. "We are thrilled," said Chris Wayland, WHDH's general manager and vice president.
At 10 p.m., WFXT, a Fox affiliate, continued to dominate, beating WLVI-TV (Channel 56). WFXT had 172,600 viewers to WLVI's 45,100, but both stations gained viewers compared with a year ago. WFXT gained 13,900 viewers and WLVI added 8,900. Last week, WFXT's 10 p.m. newscast ranked 23d overall in the market with 261,000 viewers, just behind CBS's "CSI: NY."
The 11 p.m. competition, considered the most lucrative of the daily newscasts based on revenue, was locked in by WBZ. At 11 p.m., WBZ also won the key demographic of viewers age 25 to 54.
Johnny Diaz can be reached at jodiaz@globe.com. 
