The big bang of older TV viewers

Prime-time TV is going gray.

After decades chasing young viewers, the broadcast networks are starting to shift tactics -- peppering their lineups with shows and actors who appeal to the growing audience of aging baby boomers. The trend is being driven by demographics. Members of the baby boom generation will all be 50 or older, and they watch a disproportionate amount of TV. The median age of a broadcast television viewer is now the highest ever at 54. Twenty years ago, it was 41. The most-watched scripted series in the 1993-94 season was "Home Improvement," with a median viewer age of 34. Today, it's "NCIS," with a median viewer who is 61. Confronted with these realities, the networks are aggressively making the case to advertisers that older viewers are valuable -- especially the affluent and influential 55-to-64-year-olds they're calling "alpha boomers." The 50-and-up crowd of today, they contend, is far different than the frugal and brand-loyal group that came of age during the Great Depression and World War II. "These people are more active, healthier and much more likely to still be in the workforce," said David Poltrack, chief research officer at CBS. "It's certainly a much more vibrant and economically active audience than it used to be."