With ‘Empire,’ diversity becomes the watchword on television

Published 1:46 pm Monday, February 2, 2015

LOS ANGELES —Then along came Fox’s “Empire.”

The hip-hop drama starring Terrence Howard as an ailing music mogul and Taraji P. Henson as his extremely colorful ex-wife was an instant smash, with 9.9 million viewers tuning in to its Jan. 7 debut on Fox.

“Empire” and shows like it not only are bringing more diverse faces to prime time, but also are harnessing the power of black viewers, a group long neglected by broadcast networks despite the fact that African-Americans watch a disproportionate share of traditional television — an average of 201 hours a month in the third quarter of 2014, according to Nielsen. While all three series are broad-based hits attracting viewers of all races, they are also particularly popular with black audiences. “Empire” is most dramatically so: Nearly two-thirds of its viewers under 50 are African-American.

Tribune Content Agency