The Ellen DeGeneres Show scores a personal ratings
best

Just in time for the holidays, The Ellen DeGeneres Show got a nice gift for the week ending December 19. The syndicated talker averaged a 2.4 household rating--its best weekly performance ever. The rating for the talk show, in its sophomore season, represents a 9% increase from the previous week, according to Nielsen Media Research data. Ellen's rating also is up 50% compared with a year ago, which is the biggest year-to-year gain of any show in syndication. Among the other talkers, The Oprah Winfrey Show was still tops but fell 8% from the previous week to a 6.6, a season low. Dr. Phil also was down, falling 2% to a 5.1. Live With Regis and Kelly, meanwhile, jumped 6% to a 3.6. Three other talkers also posted increases during the week: Maury (3.0) was up 7%, The Montel Williams Show (2.5) jumped 9%, and The Jerry Springer Show (2.3) was up 5% to a new season high.