In addition, the last set of telenovelas were preempted several times for reality specials and other programming before being dropped altogether.

The directive, from the Fox Entertainment chairman, Sandy Grushow, last winter promised that the reality specials that made Fox famous (or infamous) were "gone, over."

In the furor that followed, Fox executives disavowed their reality specials.

Although Fox will continue to broadcast movies or reality specials on Thursday nights, it is showing some ingenuity this week with "Surviving the Moment of Impact."

NBC has five hours of news magazines and one hour of unspecified reality specials.

On Sundays at 7, NBC will go with an assortment of shows, including some sports specials and other "reality" specials.

And few other Fox programs deliver such consistently high ratings as the reality specials network employees reverently call, in Darnell's honor, "MDTV."

Because it sends a loud and clear message that we've got to get away from these exploitative reality specials.

Jeffrey Cole, director of the center and the study, said: "The major difference this year was the reality specials, and the fact that regularly scheduled series showed improvement."

Fox will replace it with a repeat of the series "Boston Public" next Monday and after that will show reality specials for the rest of the month.