Variety reports that on Monday CBS ordered a second nine episode run of its revived "Star Search" series. The second run of the series will begin on Wednesday, February 19th at 8PM -- only days after the first run's February 6th finale.
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Due to the fact that starting February 13th the series' current Thursday 8PM ET timeslot will be unavailable -- a little show called "Survivor" will be airing in that slot -- the second run will air Wednesdays and Fridays at 8PM ET. We'll be interested in seeing how the program's ratings hold up during its move to the much less desirable Friday evening timeslot (remember, the last reality show to receive that partiuclar programming kiss of death was ABC's "The Mole 2" -- and it damn near killed the entire frachise!)
The decision to keep "Star Search" going means that the fourth edition of CBS' other Wednesday evening reality entry, "The Amazing Race," may not return until late spring or summer. While "Race" has traditionally aired in the Wednesday 9PM timeslot, it's 8PM "60 Minutes II" lead-in had been shifted to the 9PM timeslot during the initial "Star Search" run. And with "Star Search" continuing in the 8PM timeslot, CBS now faces a few options... move "60 Minutes II" to yet another timeslot, move "The Amazing Race" to another timeslot, or delay "Race 4" until "Star Search" completes its second run. As of yet, there is no official word from CBS as to which scheduling option they are planning to execute.
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