1988–89 United States network television schedule

This was the television schedule on all four networks for the fall season beginning in September 1988. All times are Eastern and Pacific, with certain exceptions, such as Monday Night Football.

PBS is not included; member stations have local flexibility over most of their schedules and broadcast times for network shows may vary.

New series are highlighted in bold.

All times given are in U.S. Eastern Time and Pacific Time (except for some live events or specials). Subtract one hour for Central and Mountain times.

Each of the 30 highest-rated shows is listed with its rank and rating as determined by Nielsen Media Research.[1]

  Yellow indicates the programs in the top 10 for the season.
  Cyan indicates the programs in the top 20 for the season.
  Magenta indicates the programs in the top 30 for the season.

Impact on the 1988 Writers Guild of America strike
Main article: 1988 Writers Guild of America strike

The 1988 Writers Guild of America strike lasted between March 7 and August 7. During the strike, production on scripted television series across all of the major television networks was suspended. The writers' strike forced the networks to postpone the start of the fall 1988 schedule later than usual; rather than the traditional late-September/early-October start, new and returning series had their premieres delayed until late October and into November. In the interim, the networks had to rely on a hodgepodge of programming, including reruns, movies, entertainment and news specials, program-length political advertising, and unscripted original series (e.g. CBS' High Risk); NBC and ABC also benefited from sports programming (NBC relied on the Summer Olympics in September and the World Series in October, while ABC had postseason baseball coverage and moved up the start time for the early weeks of Monday Night Football from 9 p.m. ET to 8 p.m. ET to replace MacGyver, which was not yet ready with new episodes at the time). Even though previous strikes of Hollywood employees occurred in 1980 and 1981, those strikes only had a minor effect on the production of television programs that aired in the 1980–81 and 1981–82 seasons. The 1988–89 television season was thus the first of three television seasons to have its start delayed due to issues outside of the control of the major networks; the next two instances occurred in the 2001–02 season (due to the networks' news coverage of the September 11 attacks) and the 2020–21 season (due to the suspension of television productions as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic).

Sunday
Network 7:00 PM 7:30 PM 8:00 PM 8:30 PM 9:00 PM 9:30 PM 10:00 PM 10:30 PM
ABC Fall Incredible Sunday Mission: Impossible The ABC Sunday Night Movie
Mid-season Studio 5-B Specials
Follow-up Great Circuses of the World
Spring Incredible Sunday Moonlighting
Summer Have Faith The ABC Sunday Night Movie
Follow-up MacGyver The ABC Sunday Night Movie
CBS 60 Minutes (#5/21.7) Murder, She Wrote (#8/19.9) CBS Sunday Movie (#27/16.1)
(Tied with Knots Landing)
Fox 21 Jump Street America's Most Wanted Married... with Children The Tracey Ullman Show It's Garry Shandling's Show Duet Local
NBC The Magical World of Disney Family Ties Day by Day NBC Sunday Night Movie (#22/16.3)
(Tied with The Hogan Family and The Wonder Years)

Monday
Network 8:00 PM 8:30 PM 9:00 PM 9:30 PM 10:00 PM 10:30 PM
ABC Fall MacGyver Monday Night Football (#15/17.5)
(Tied with ALF)
Winter The ABC Monday Night Movie
Mid-season The ABC Monday Mystery Movie (#29/15.4)
(Tied with Dallas)
CBS Fall Newhart Coming of Age (October) Local and Paid Political Programming
Follow-up Kate & Allie (Dec.) Murphy Brown Designing Women Almost Grown
Spring Live-In Heartland Newhart Kate & Allie
Summer Kate & Allie Doctor Doctor
Follow-up Kate & Allie Designing Women Newhart
NBC Fall ALF (#15/17.5)
(Tied with Monday Night Football)		 The Hogan Family (#22/16.3)
(Tied with the NBC Sunday Night Movie and The Wonder Years)		 NBC Monday Night at the Movies (#25/16.2)
(Tied with Amen)
Spring Nearly Departed
Follow-up The Hogan Family (#22/16.3)
(Tied with the NBC Sunday Night Movie and The Wonder Years)

(*) B.L. Stryker, Columbo, Gideon Oliver

Tuesday
Network 8:00 PM 8:30 PM 9:00 PM 9:30 PM 10:00 PM 10:30 PM
ABC Fall Who's the Boss? (#7/20.8) Roseanne (#2/23.8) Moonlighting Thirtysomething
Winter The Wonder Years (#22/16.3)
(Tied with The Hogan Family and the NBC Sunday Night Movie)		 Roseanne (#2/23.8) Anything But Love (#10/19.0)
Spring Have Faith
Summer Coach
CBS Preliminary Local and Paid Political Programming CBS Tuesday Movie
Official TV 101
Mid-Season Tour of Duty
Summer CBS Summer Playhouse
NBC Preliminary Matlock (#13/17.7) NBC Tuesday Night at the Movies
Official In the Heat of the Night (#18/17.3) Midnight Caller

Wednesday
Network 8:00 PM 8:30 PM 9:00 PM 9:30 PM 10:00 PM 10:30 PM
ABC Fall Growing Pains (#13/17.6)
(Tied with L.A. Law)		 Head of the Class (#20/17.1) The Wonder Years (#22/16.3)
(Tied with The Hogan Family and the NBC Sunday Night Movie)		 Hooperman China Beach
Spring Coach
Follow-up The Robert Guillaume Show
Summer Hooperman
CBS Preliminary Live! Dick Clark Presents The Equalizer Wiseguy
Official The Van Dyke Show Annie McGuire
Mid-Season TV 101
Follow-up Hard Time on Planet Earth Jake and the Fatman
NBC Fall Unsolved Mysteries (#17/17.4) Night Court (#21/16.9) Baby Boom Tattingers
Follow-up A Different World
Mid-season My Two Dads Nightingales
Summer Knight & Daye Miami Vice

Thursday
Network 8:00 PM 8:30 PM 9:00 PM 9:30 PM 10:00 PM 10:30 PM
ABC Preliminary Local and Paid Political Programming The ABC Thursday Night Movie
Official Knightwatch Dynasty W5
Mid-Season A Fine Romance HeartBeat
Summer Thursday Night Baseball
CBS Preliminary 48 Hours Local and Paid Political Programming
Official Paradise Knots Landing (#27/16.1)
(Tied with The CBS Sunday Movie)
Mid-Season The Equalizer
Summer The Cavanaughs Coming of Age The Equalizer
Follow-up The Equalizer The Best of Knots Landing
NBC The Cosby Show (#1/25.6) A Different World (#3/23.0) Cheers (#4/22.3) Dear John (#11/18.5) L.A. Law (#13/17.6)
(Tied with Growing Pains)

Friday
Network 8:00 PM 8:30 PM 9:00 PM 9:30 PM 10:00 PM 10:30 PM
ABC Fall Perfect Strangers Full House Mr. Belvedere Just the Ten of Us 20/20
Summer Full House Mr. Belvedere Perfect Strangers
CBS Fall Beauty and the Beast Dallas (#29/15.4)
(Tied with The ABC Mystery Movie)		 Falcon Crest
Summer CBS Friday Movie
NBC Fall Sonny Spoon Something Is Out There Miami Vice
Winter Father Dowling Mysteries Miami Vice Unsub
Spring The Jim Henson Hour Quantum Leap
Follow-up Miami Vice Dream Street
Summer Highway to Heaven NBC Friday Night at the Movies

Saturday
Network 8:00 PM 8:30 PM 9:00 PM 9:30 PM 10:00 PM 10:30 PM
ABC Fall Murphy's Law Police Story
Mid-season Mission: Impossible A Man Called Hawk Murphy's Law
Follow-up Men
CBS Preliminary Local and Paid Political Programming Simon & Simon West 57th
Follow-up Live! Dick Clark Presents
Official Dirty Dancing Raising Miranda
Mid-season Dolphin Cove The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour
Follow-up TV 101
Follow-up Paradise CBS Saturday Movie
Follow-up Jesse Hawkes West 57th
Summer Tour of Duty
Fox Fall The Reporters Beyond Tomorrow Local Programming
Spring Cops Beyond Tomorrow
NBC Fall 227 Amen (#25/16.2)
(Tied with The NBC Monday Movie)		 The Golden Girls (#6/21.4) Empty Nest (#9/19.2) Hunter (#19/17.2)
Summer 13 East

By network

ABC

CBS

Fox

NBC

Note: The * indicates that the program was introduced in midseason.

@ Formerly known as Valerie's Family.

References
  1. Highest-rated series is based on the annual top-rated programs list compiled by Nielsen Media Research and reported in: Brooks, Tim & Marsh, Earle (2007). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network TV Shows (9th ed.). New York: Ballantine. ISBN 978-0-345-49773-4.
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