‘E-Ring,’ Martha Stewart ‘Apprentice’ to swap slots

NBC has thrown Martha Stewart to the “Lost” wolves – or polar bear, shark, tree-shaking monster, whatever – in an effort to rescue the boys at the Pentagon.

Starting tonight, the Stewart-hosted version of “The Apprentice” will exchange time slots with Jerry Bruckheimer’s new military drama. “E-Ring,” starring Benjamin Bratt and Dennis Hopper, takes over at 8, nudging Martha to 9.

NBC had hoped that all that Stewart’s-out-of-the-slammer hoopla would bring in big ratings for her version of the Donald Trump-spawned reality vehicle, but her show has averaged a lean 6.5-ish million viewers in two broadcasts at the 8 p.m. hour.

“E-Ring” last week logged just 7.7 million viewers against ABC’s “Lost” (23 million) and CBS’ “Criminal Minds” (11 million).

Her prime-time debut hasn’t suppressed Stewart’s television blitz. Her company, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, recently purchased a 125-year-old house in Norwalk, Conn., to use as the site of a 13-episode home-improvement series to air on one of Discovery’s cable channels.

No love for ‘Sex’

UPN has shut down production on its new prime-time soap, “Sex, Love & Secrets,” after one broadcast.

Seven episodes have been produced, so that doesn’t necessarily mean the show, about beautiful people living in the hip Silver Lake area of Los Angeles, has been scrubbed. But after nabbing a mere 1.4 million viewers in its unveiling last week, the Tuesday night series’ long-term viability looks bleak.

Bravo returns to ‘Runway’

On the (high) heels of its Emmy nomination for best reality-competition program, Bravo’s “Project Runway” is readying its return to the air.

The fashion-design competition will open its second season Dec. 7, with 16 new aspiring designers vying for the chance to launch their own clothing line. Model Heidi Klum will return as host and judge.