Second50Years Marketing Blog

The graying of the audience for major network TV continues to cause groans among advertisers and network execs. Why we are not sure, given the buying power of the older consumer. In a recent report, media agency Magna Global found the following:

• the median age for viewers of newscasts from NBC, ABC and CBS is 61.
• the network morning show audiences are younger with “Today” having a median age of 55; “The Early Show” with an audience aged 52-54; and “Good Morning America” with a median age of 55.
• the CBS game show “The Price is Right” has the oldest average audience at 64.
• all three early late night talk shows, Leno, Letterman, and Kimmel, have median ages of 50 or older. Even Conan O’Brien’s audience is closer to 50 than 40. In contrast, Comedy Central’s median late-night viewer is age 30.

This seems like a great advertising opportunity for businesses that sell to the older adults. So why all the moaning? What do you think?