NBC’s annual “Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular” took a nosedive on Thursday, falling to a new low among adults 18-49 and a low since 2015 in total viewers, according to overnight Nielsen data.
The two-hour live telecast, hosted by Derek Hough and Ciara, posted a 0.9 rating and 5.9 million viewers. Last year’s NBC fireworks special earned a 1.2 rating and 7.5 million viewers, a six-year high for the televised Fourth of July celebration.
Overall viewership in the all-important 18-49 range was down 17% during Thursday primetime compared to last year’s July 4th, when the holiday fell on a Wednesday.
NBC was first in ratings with a 0.9 rating in the advertiser-coveted 18-49 demographic and in total viewers with an average of 5.4 million, according to preliminary numbers. The fireworks special from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. earned the previously mentioned 0.9 and 5.9 million viewers. A rebroadcast aired after.
CBS, Fox and ABC tied for second in ratings, each with a 0.3. CBS was second in total viewers with 2.9 million, ABC was third with 1.7 million and Fox was fourth with 1.4 million.
For CBS, following a string of repeats, “Elementary” at 10 p.m. settled for a 0.3 and 2.9 million viewers.
Fox and ABC aired only reruns.
The CW averaged a 0.1 rating and 450,000 viewers, also filling its primetime lineup with encores.
Data for Spanish language networks Telemundo and Univision was not immediately available at the time of publication.