Zap2It talks about the ratings of last night's Academy Awards, including the comparison of the progamming to FOX's airing of Episode I as well:

Due to the nature of live events like the Oscars, the ratings reflect time period data rather than numbers for individual programs. Thus, while the other four networks are probably set, the ratings for ABC's Oscar coverage can be expected to change dramatically when the final ratings come in.

ABC began the night in the lead with the 12.3/20 for Barbara Walters' annual interview special. CBS took second with the 6.8/11 for "60 Minutes," beating NBC's newsmagazine, "Dateline." On FOX, the first hour of "Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace" had a 3.2/5, beating the 1.9/3 for a "Smallville" encore on The WB.

At 8 p.m., "Countdown to Oscar" and the beginning of the Academy Awards led ABC to a 23.5/35 for the hour. CBS stayed second with the 5.8/9 for a repeat of "Cold Case," which NBC remained in third with the 5.0/8 for "Law & Order: Criminal Intent." FOX held fourth with "The Phantom Menace," as the first hour of The WB's airing of "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" had a 1.7/3.