Broadcast TV audience median age hits the big 5-0

There's a reason Andy Rooney is still on TV.

A recent study cited by Variety.com puts the average age of a "live broadcast" TV viewer at 50--higher than ever before. One reason, the story says, is that younger audiences are gravitating toward other media:

"The median ages of the broadcast networks keep rising, as traditional television is no longer necessarily the first screen for the younger set," [says the study's author Steve] Sternberg...

Rooney's CBS is the grayest of the lot, but the other major networks aren't exactly spring chickens:

For the just-completed 2007-08 TV season, CBS was oldest in live viewing with a median age of 54. ABC clocked in at 50, followed by NBC (49), [and] Fox (44).

What does this mean for advertisers? First and foremost, of course, pay attention to the specific demographics for individual shows. Also, if TV is part of your media plan, and you're targeting a younger audience, cable deserves a much closer look.

Hat tip: Lou Harry's A & E on IBJ.com