1988–89 United States network television schedule
1988–89 United States network primetime schedule (overview)
The four major U.S. commercial networks—ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox—planned their primetime from September 1988 through August 1989. PBS isn’t included; local stations can adjust many time slots. Times shown are Eastern and Pacific; subtract one hour for Central, Mountain, Alaska and Hawaii–Aleutian times. New series are identified in the schedule, and the top 30 shows are listed with their Nielsen rankings.
The Writers Guild strike and schedule impact
From March 7 to August 7, 1988, writers’ strike halted production on most scripted programs. Because of the strike, the start of the fall schedule was delayed later than usual, with new and returning series premiering from late October into November. In the meantime, networks filled gaps with reruns, films, specials, and unscripted programs, along with some sports coverage. NBC leaned on the Summer Olympics and the World Series; ABC used postseason baseball and moved Monday Night Football up to 8 p.m. ET early in the season to replace MacGyver, which wasn’t ready with new episodes.
This season started a pattern of delayed premieres caused by factors outside the networks’ control, a pattern that would recur in four television seasons: 1988–89, 2001–02 (9/11 coverage), 2020–21 (COVID-19 shutdowns), and 2023–24 (Hollywood labor disputes).
Notes and special cases
- (*) indicates midseason introductions.
- (+) indicates shows that returned as backup midseason.
- @ indicates Valerie’s family (formerly known as Valerie’s Family).
- On CBS, Frank’s Place consisted of reruns from the 1987–88 season.
- On ABC, the ABC Saturday Mystery Movie was originally slated for 9–11 p.m. but the strike forced a move to Mondays.
Beyond these notes, the full schedule includes returning series, new series, and those not returning from 1987–88 for each network.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 07:03 (CET).