The Declining Dominance of Broadcast Television

More and more TV viewers are choosing cable channels over traditional broadcast networks. So says a recent article in MediaLife magazine. The article cites a recent study by Turner Broadcasting which showed:

"Cable drew a best-ever 61 household share between May 30 and Aug. 21, according to Nielsen data analyzed by Turner Broadcasting and released yesterday. That was up 7 percent over last year's 57. Broadcast sank to a 32 share for the seven networks, including Pax, down 12 percent from last year.
It was the biggest summer dropoff since 1997, according to Turner, and it marks the fifth straight summer that cable has outdrawn broadcast in households.

Put another way, television audiences are continuing to fragment and segment into increasingly narrow niches.