newsmakers

newsmakers

ABC has strong week thanks to Swift, Billboard Music Awards

NEW YORK

Taylor Swift kick-started the Billboard Music Awards and boosted ABC in the television ratings, too.

The singer’s big night helped the awards show to its most-watched night since 2001. The Nielsen company said 11.2 million saw the show Sunday, where Swift won eight awards to become the most-decorated artist in Billboard Award history and debuted her new music video.

Coupled with “Dancing With the Stars” and other finales to some of ABC’s biggest series, the network finished a close second to dominant CBS in viewership last week and won among the 18-to-49-year-old demographic it targets. ABC has won in that demo for four-straight weeks, although NBC won for the television season as a whole. Among all viewers, CBS won for the seventh year in a row.

For the week of May 11-17, the top 10 shows, their networks and viewerships: “NCIS,” CBS, 14.94 million; “NCIS: New Orleans,” CBS, 13.61 million; “Dancing With the Stars,” ABC, 13.48 million; “Billboard Music Awards,” ABC, 11.18 million; “Dancing With the Stars Results Show,” ABC, 10.16 million; “The Voice” (Monday), NBC, 10.05 million; “Survivor,” CBS, 9.61 million; “The Big Bang Theory,” CBS, 9.57 million; “The Voice” (Tuesday), NBC, 9.14 million; “60 Minutes,” CBS, 8.99 million.

Girl who got call from Taylor Swift dies after cancer battle

CHICAGO

A 12-year-old Chicago girl who talked to singer Taylor Swift about music, touring and disease and served as an honorary police officer has died after a battle with cancer, her family said Tuesday.

Friends and family appealed for a call from Swift via social media to call Emily, including a video with about 200 children singing and dancing to Swift songs.

Emily’s mother, Nadia Beazley, says her daughter had “the biggest smile” and “jumped up and down” after the Grammy Award winner’s call.

Associated Press