Susan Boyle bumps Obama...
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After some hesitation and a time shift, three major broadcast networks have agreed to carry Barack Obama's latest primetime news conference.

The event was announced Friday afternoon as Obama battles to bolster congressional support for an ambitious health-care overhaul while facing dropping approval ratings.

But broadcasters are struggling with falling approval ratings of their own — Nielsen’s audience measurements show viewership in a summertime slump.

The conference would mark the president's fourth primetime press event since he took office six months ago. Such interruptions tend to wreak havoc with network schedules and can cost millions in lost advertising.

CBS, which airs only repeats that evening, agreed early Monday to cover the conference.

But for NBC, Fox and ABC, the decision was tougher. During a summer that’s otherwise strewn with repeats, Wednesday includes all their top-rated reality programs.

Fox declined to air the press conference outright. NBC and ABC fell into line late Monday after the White House shifted the event’s time from the previously announced 9 p.m. to the lesser-watched hour of 8 p.m.


Click to view image: 'd760a1030678-001.jpg'The stakes were especially high for NBC, which airs the most-watched show of the summer, "America's Got Talent," at 9 p.m., and this week it includes a heavily promoted interview with "Britain's Got Talent" singing sensation Susan Boyle.

Sources said that NBC demonstrated reluctance to carry Obama's news conference live and, faced with the prospect of only two major broadcasters (CBS and ABC) covering it, the White House moved its start to 8 p.m.

Fox airs its top-rated two-hour “So You Think You Can Dance” on Wednesday nights and will direct viewers to Fox News. This is the second time Fox has ruled against covering an Obama press conference, a move the network has made in the past when the event’s purpose seemed less-than-urgent.

The White House announced the conference via its Twitter feed on Friday afternoon — “You heard it here first: Primetime presidential news conference at the White House, Wed. 7/22 @ 9PM EDT."

ABC’s top reality show “Wipeout” airs at 8 p.m. and will be pushed to 9 p.m., with “I Survived a Japanese Game Show” moved to 10 p.m. NBC normally airs “America’s Got Talent” repeats in the 8 p.m. hour, which will be pre-empted.