Dominic Patten of Deadline Hollywood reports that the new reality shows from CNBC reported mixed viewing data during the first week.

Patten writes, “Debuting at 9 PM, the antiquities authenticating Treasure Detectives pulled in 279,000 total viewers and 62,000 in the Adults 25-54 demographic on the channel. That’s a jump from the 195,000 total viewers and 49,000 in the demo that watched the 60 Minutes repeat that sat in the slot last week.

“However, Car Chasers did not fare as well. The series, which follows classic car dealers Jeff Allen and Perry Barndt as buying and selling exotic vehicles around the country, fell double digits from the encore episode of American Greed that aired at 10 PM on February 26. Earning 210,000 total viewers and 64,000 among the 25-54, Car Chasers was down 25% in audience and 22% in the demo from what the true crime series got the week before. Even with a repeat last week, it was a hard slot to fill on a network primarily previously focused on its daytime programming.

“Since debuting in 2007, American Greed has been CNBC’s second most popular show overall in terms of viewership and number one in terms of the demo. The show’s seventh season debuted on February 21. Earlier this year at the TCA, network president and CEO Mark Hoffman described Treasure Detectives and The Car Chasers as meeting participants at ‘the intersection of fear and greed’ in the new entertainment focus of CNBC in primetime.

“The two new shows are the first of several evening reality shows that CNBC plans to roll out in the coming weeks to beef up its primetime slots.”

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David Bauder of The Associated Press looks at CNBC‘s new reality shows and how the business news network is trying to attract new viewers.

Bauder writes, “Allen said he felt comfortable working with CNBC.

“‘I felt like I didn’t have to be a character, that we could show up and be ourselves and not have to be phony,’ he said.

“CNBC is sticking to Tuesday nights for its new shows for the foreseeable future, although there may be reruns on other nights. Depending on how things go over the next year or so, a second night of shows might be added, Ackerman said.

“Besides business fans, CNBC is also interested in reaching viewers who don’t usually watch the network. They’ll like it even if some of the shows feel familiar, Ackerman said, comparing them to the familiar police procedural dramas.

“‘My sense is if it’s a good story, you’re still going to find an audience for it,’ he said.”

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Sean Daly of The New York Post writes about business news network CNBC’s strategy of adding reality shows to its evening lineup.

Daly writes, “The network, under pressure from its corporate parent, Comcast, to bring in money in the hours after the market closes, hired Ackerman — who brought ‘Celebrity Fit Club’ and ‘Best Week Ever’ to the music channel VH1 — last summer to develop unscripted content for evening hours.

“Business shows have ‘all the hallmarks of great drama,’ he says. ‘fear, ambition, wins, losses. And people sort of enjoy watching transactions. They like seeing people vying to get something cheaper.’

“Ackerman’s first two series, ‘Treasure Detectives’ and ‘The Car Chasers’ premiere tomorrow night. One follows cars flipped in Las Vegas and the other features art expert Curtis Dowling, who uses science to determine if collectables are real or counterfeit.

“‘It’s one part ‘CSI,’ and one part ‘Antiques Road Show,’’ he says. ‘It’s a fresh take that is well suited for CNBC.’

“Cheap, self-contained and highly repeatable formats — like ‘Flip This House,’ ‘Bar Rescue’ and ‘Tabatha Takes Over’ — have become cash cows for other networks.

“But no business program is hotter right now than ABC’s ‘Shark Tank.’

“In its fourth season, the venture capitalist show has seen its ratings jump almost every week since moving to Friday nights.”

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Michelle Reuter od The Daily Sundail, the student newspaper of Call State-Northridge, writes about CNBC anchor Sue Herera, who spoke on campus.

Reuter writes, “By 1989 FNN’s prospects were failing and Herera thought it best to look for another job. That’s when she was approached to take a position at a new start-up network at NBC

“CNBC was such a new idea, that the network did not think it would be successful. Herera said they would not even allow use of the iconic NBC peacock logo in their promos. Executives feared the new network would damage the image of the multi-colored bird.

“But since then CNBC has been providing business news for more than 20 years.

“After her presentation, the audience was given the opportunity to ask questions. Many people asked her opinion on specific market trends and one professor asked what advice she would give students who want to enter into business news.

“‘One thing that I would say is what they might want to do is take a job on Wall Street for a year or two,’ Herera said. ‘I think if you are considering business news and you want to do the markets then I would advocate learning the way I did, just getting into the trenches and learn it from the floor. If you were interested more in the corporate side of it I would get a job at one of the investment banks and see how their culture works.’”

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