Tuning In

Rock the (kid) vote

Children can’t vote, but they can take part in the political process, veteran newswoman Linda Ellerbee says.

The latest Nick News special, “Kids Pick the Issues 2004,” gives viewers a peek into the minds of tomorrow’s voters. The special airs Sunday at 8:30 p.m. on cable’s Nickelodeon.

The show “gets them involved in the notion that not only does the world affect them, but they can affect the world,” says Miss Ellerbee, who has been following how youngsters think about politics for the past 13 years.

Children, much like their parents, are concerned about terrorism, and they’re also following the nation’s economy.

Neither revelation surprises, but she says where children differ starkly from their parents is in their palpable concern about gun control. The issue stems from the publicized school shootings in recent years.

“They’re very clear,” Miss Ellerbee says. “They want to feel safe at school, but they don’t want their schools turned into jails.”

Another issue passed over by many voters but not by children is the environment.

Miss Ellerbee says children are more attuned to the political world today than a decade ago.

“With Oklahoma City, September 11, the war in Iraq and school shootings, they don’t live in a wonderland,” she says.

Some children simply parrot their parents’ polemics. For others, though, their political lives are just beginning.

Parents could learn a thing or two about American democracy from their children, she says.

“The kids are far more interested in talking about the issues than the horse race. They don’t have the cynicism that ’all politicians are liars, so what does it matter whether you vote or not?’” Miss Ellerbee notes.

Stateside ’Extreme’

Spike TV’s wacky import “Most Extreme Elimination Challenge” (MXC) returns tonight with a new episode shot in the United States.

“MXC: Almost Live,” airing at 11 p.m. on Spike TV, kicks off the third season of the bizarre — and occasionally hilarious — game show.

Students from the University of Central Florida and various other Orlando-area colleges near Universal Studios Florida played such classic MXC games as Log Roll, Sinkers & Floaters and Window Pain for the episode.

Normally the show reconfigures material from the mid-1980s program “Takeshi’s Castle,” a popular Japanese reality game show, with commentary added later by English-speaking broadcasters. Tonight’s episode, featuring skateboarding legend Tony Hawk and snowboarder Tara Dakides as celebrity coaches, marks the first time that footage wasn’t used.

New episodes of “MXC” will air at 10 p.m. on subsequent Thursdays.

Must-see Trump TV

Say what you will about the Donald. He certainly delivers the ratings goods.

The real estate magnate was almost single-handedly responsible for NBC’s ratings sweep last week, Associated Press reports.

The finale of “The Apprentice,” in which Mr. Trump hired Bill Rancic to oversee a Chicago construction project, was seen by more than 28 million people last week.

That was only the beginning. A “Dateline NBC” special behind-the-scenes look at “The Apprentice” rode the show’s coattails to the tune of 10.4 million viewers.

NBC News received criticism for its extensive coverage, and deservedly so, but it paid off in the ratings. A Trump profile on “Dateline NBC” was the second-most-watched show (behind a “Cold Case” rerun) Friday night. The Peacock Network could argue, too, that CBS has been milking its “Survivor” franchise for years by having the latest evictee appear on its morning news show the next day.

In non-Trump news, the Miss USA pageant, which moved to NBC after many years on CBS, had its biggest audience in six years.

But wait. … Guess who owns the pageant? Mr. Trump.

Meanwhile, a special edition of “Fear Factor” with Miss USA contestants landed in Nielsen’s top 10, drawing more viewers than the pageant itself.

Trump-inspired TV enabled NBC to win the week with an average of 11.6 million viewers (7.6 rating, 13 share), a position dominated by CBS this season. NBC also won handily among the 18-to-49-year-old demographic, which advertisers love.

CBS was second with 10.8 million viewers (7.1, 12). Fox, hurt in the ratings when President Bush’s news conference forced the network to reschedule “American Idol,” averaged 8.3 million (5.2, 9), and ABC had 7.4 million (4.8, 8).

The WB had 3.4 million viewers (2.3, 4), UPN 2.9 million (1.9, 3) and Pax TV 960,000 (0.6, 1).

A ratings point represents 1.084 million households, or 1 percent of the nation’s estimated 108.4 million TV homes. The share is the percentage of in-use televisions tuned to a given show.

For the week of April 12 through 18, the top five shows, their networks and viewerships were: “The Apprentice,” NBC, 28 million; “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” CBS, 23.8 million; “American Idol” (Wednesday), Fox, 23.1 million; “Survivor: All-Stars,” CBS, 20.4 million; “Without a Trace,” CBS, 17.1 million.

Compiled by Christian Toto from staff and wire reports.