The Day

Everyone seems to like Jimmy Fallon

- By BETHONIE BUTLER

Liberals like Stephen Colbert. Republican­s favor Jimmy Kimmel. And pretty much everyone likes Jimmy Fallon.

That's a rough translatio­n of the Hollywood Reporter's survey of late-night television viewers. The survey, conducted by Penn, Schoen & Berland, comes five years after the entertainm­ent glossy first polled viewers about a very different late-night lineup that included Jay Leno, David Letterman and Jon Stewart.

A whopping 47 percent of the viewers polled said they would opt for "The Tonight Show," which Fallon took over in February of last year, if all of the late-night shows aired at the same time. This includes cable offerings such as "Conan" and "The Daily Show" and those in later time slots, such as "Late Night with Seth Meyers." Jimmy Kimmel came in a distant second with 20 percent.

There aren't many earth-shattering revelation­s in this year's survey - Fallon's dominance has held strong even after the much-hyped "Late Show" debut of Stephen Colbert - but it's an interestin­g look into what each host brings to the table.

Fallon has a broader appeal in many respects - he was more popular with women than any other host and was the top pick when viewers were asked who they'd want to grab a beer with. Viewers were more likely to associate the words "authentic," "cool dude" and "party animal" with the "Saturday Night Live" alum, than with Kimmel or Colbert.

One thing possibly working in Fallon's favor is the fact that viewers said they cared less about opening monologues than those polled in 2010. Thirty-eight percent of viewers said the monologue was their favorite in 2010, compared to just 23 percent this year. Interviews with guests, followed by comedic commentary or skits were rated as the second most favorite.

Not a lot of Republican­s are watching "The Late Show" - just 17 percent of his audience identifies as members of the GOP. Given his "Colbert Report" roots, that's not surprising. He has more independen­ts and atheists in his fanbase as well.

Kimmel's viewers are more likely to be Republican or conservati­ve than those who watch his peers. Plenty of Clinton fans are watching "Jimmy Kimmel Live," but 30 percent of his viewers reported favoring Trump.

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