Oscars Most-Watched Since 2005

Some good news for the networks: Sunday night's Academy Awards telecast was the most-watched ceremony since 2005 with 41.3 million viewers, a 15 percent jump from the 2009 ratings. The improvement comes as part of a two-year trend; the 2009 telecast drew in 26 percent more viewers than in 2008. According to Nielsen ratings, viewer demographics also saw a shift, and much of the gain in viewers came from audience members over the age of 50. The great ratings came in spite of the fact that WABC's conflict with Cablevision caused the telecast to go off the air for half an hour ratings in the New York area, normally the show's No. 1 market.