HISTORY CHANNEL MAKES HISTORY

The History Channel’s Hatfields & McCoys miniseries, starring Kevin Costner and Bill Paxton, managed to make history in its own right this week by setting records for the biggest audience for any non-sports program on cable ever. Monday night’s launch captured 13.9 million viewers, according to Nielsen Research, with an additional 3.2 million watching the second run later in the night. Especially remarkable was the fact that it faced strong competition from two broadcast hits, NBC’s America’s Got Talent, which drew 10 million viewers, and ABC’s The Bachelorette with 5.8 million. There was only a slight ratings drop-off on Tuesday with 13.1 million tuning in. Then on Wednesday, the miniseries’ finale set a new record — 14.3 million viewers, which will likely make it the most-watched show on television this week — cable or broadcast.