Source: David Dale, Sun Herald blogs

Advertisements on the ABC were a big hit last week. The opening episode of The Gruen Transfer, a skeptical analysis of TV commercials, drew 1.29 million in the mainland capitals, making it second only to Spicks and Specks (1.31m)
as the ABC’s most popular show. SBS, the national broadcaster which
takes commercials seriously, could manage only 487,000 for its top
show, a repeat of Top Gear, and 427,000 for the Eurovision song contest final.

And while a defamation jury ruled on Thursday that Seven’s Today Tonight had
less credibility than the sister of Schappelle Corby, 1.4 million
people in the mainland capitals still considered it worth watching
every night, with another 1.3 million apparently trusting its rival A Current Affair.

Channel Nine won the week, with 27.7 per cent of the prime time
audience, closely followed by Seven on 27.5, while Ten got 20.9, ABC
17.8 and SBS 6.0. The most watched shows of the week were: 60 Minutes (9) 1.71 million; Seven news Sunday 1.71m; Border Security (7) 1.66m; Seven news Monday to Friday 1.54 m; Sea Patrol (9) 1.51m; Nine news Sunday 1.50m; Domestic Blitz (9) 1.48m; Surf Patrol (7) 1.47m; and Better Homes and Gardens (7) 1.42m.

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The Gruen Transfer (TGT) is a show about advertising, how it works, and how it works on us. Hosted by Wil Anderson, TGT  decodes and defuses the commercial messages that swirl through our lives, with the help of a panel of ad industry experts.

Each week, Wil is joined by some of the best and brightest minds of the advertising industry, experts prepared to share the ideas and insights that drive them.

Guests on the program face a series of challenges designed to show the thought processes – and, often, the brilliance – of advertising, as well as its understanding of who we are and what we want.

Each week TGT examines the tactics used to sell a particular product; it could be cars or chocolate or cleaning products.

In a segment called ‘The Pitch’, agencies compete to fulfill an impossible brief. For example, ‘make Brendan Nelson a winner’. Elsewhere, ‘Consumer’s Revenge’ allows our audience to participate in the show by making their own ads on this website. The best ads will be played during the show.

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Popularity: 1%

The award-winning Guinness beer commercial "Evolution":

Popularity: 1%