'Martha Stewart Living' moved from KCBS morning to KCAL.

Things aren't getting any easier for Martha Stewart.

Against a backdrop of sinking ratings, KCBS (Channel 2) is bumping "Martha Stewart Living," the home improvement diva's how-to television program, from its 9 a.m. time-slot to the wee hours of the morning.

In addition to moving the show, which has lost roughly 40 percent of its Los Angeles audience in the last year, to 1:30 a.m., CBS sister station KCAL (Channel 9) will begin running the program at 9 a.m., starting September 15.

KCBS officials confirmed the changes but otherwise declined to comment.

Elizabeth Estroff, a spokeswoman for Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc., which produces the show, denied that the switch was related to ratings or Stewart's legal troubles. Instead, she said the change would give the show an opportunity to expand its audience.

Stewart resigned as chairman and chief executive on June 4 after a federal indictment accused her and stockbroker Peter Bacanovic of obstructing justice and making false statements regarding her sale of shares in ImClone Systems Inc. Stewart remains on the board of the company and continues to serve as chief creative officer.

Estroff said the company was confident that it would do well, even though it will be airing on KCBS after "The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn."

"In our Baltimore and Philadelphia markets, where the show has already gone to late night on the CBS stations, our ratings show that many of our loyal viewers choose to watch it at that time," she said. "We anticipate cultivating new viewers, primarily targeting women in the 25-54 year old and 18-49 year old age groups."

In the July ratings, as reported by Nielsen Media Research, "Martha Stewart Living" garnered a 3 percent share of the local television audience on KCBS at 9 a.m. That was down from a 5 percent share during the like period last year.

The 9 a.m. slot is especially competitive, with KNBC-TV (Channel 4) airing the third hour of the "Today" show and KABC-TV (Channel 7) airing "Live With Regis and Kelly." Both shows typically have garnered more viewers.

Replacing "Martha Stewart Living" on KCBS will be "Living It Up With All and Jack," which shares a distributor, King World Productions Inc., with Stewart's show. King World has been aggressively pushing "All and Jack," which is in the vein of "Live," with lifestyle segments and celebrity interviews.

Staff reporter Darrell Satzman contributed to this story.