{alltv} Is Real Housewives Backlash Real?

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

{alltv} Is Real Housewives Backlash Real?

Since the suicide death of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills husband Russell Armstrong, the future of the series, if not the Bravo franchise, has been debated.

But have viewers stopped watching?

It's too early too tell, but in the early going, the answer is no—viewers have not stopped watching.

Sunday's Real Housewives of New Jersey was basically even with the prior all-new episode, and even improved the series' standing, moving into cable's top 120, with 2.7 million viewers.

Midweek reruns of RHONJ, which aired in the immediate aftermath of Armstrong's death, were down substantially from the previous week's, but they were reruns. About all that can be taken away from that is that Armstrong's death didn't inspire, if that's the word, a burst of interest in anything Real Housewives.

RHOBH, which itself has been in reruns as it ramps up for its still-slated Sept. 5 season-two premiere, did not air last week. The show was last seen on Aug. 8, one week to the day before the Armstrong tragedy.

Elsewhere, here are the latest TV ratings winners, based on Nielsen's just-released weekly rankings:

• Keeping Up With the Kardashians: So, apparently, there was a little family gathering over the weekend, and, accordingly, the show vaulted into cable's top 30, with 3.6 million viewers.

• The Glee Project: The finale climbed 705 places in the standings (you can do that in cable—there are a lot of places to be had), and went out before a season-high 1.2 million.

• Football Fever: It's back, and it's hot. Sunday night's preseason—preseason!—contest was the most-watched anything in TV, with 10.7 million viewers.

• Jersey Shore: Still tops in cable-land.