ABC News’ “World News Tonight” won the quarter in average total viewers for nightly news broadcasts, according to Nielsen Media Research ratings, topping average and age-demo rankings for the 6:30 p.m. ET slot.
For the second quarter of 2020, “World News Tonight,” hosted by David Muir, brought in an average of 10,331,000 viewers total. Comparatively, NBC News’ “Nightly News” with Lester Holt took in an average of 8,866,000 and CBS News’ “Evening News,” helmed by Norah O’Donnell, secured 6,257,000 viewers on average.
In the advertiser-coveted age demographics of 25 to 54 and 18 to 49, ABC News eked out similar wins over the competitors.
Among those 25 to 54, ABC News brought in 2,119,000 average viewers while NBC News grabbed an average of 1,926,000 and CBS News took in 1,166,000, on average.
Among those 18 to 49, ABC News saw an average of 1,434,000 total viewers. NBC News secured an average of 1,319,000 while CBS News brought in an average of 825,000.
The quarter saw gains for NBC News’ “Nightly News,” particularly in average total viewers: Q2 2020 was the “Nightly News” broadcast’s best total-viewer quarterly delivery in over four years, since the first quarter of 2016, and best second-quarter delivery in 16 years, since 2004.
It was also the “Nightly News” broadcast’s best second quarter viewer delivery in the 25-to-54 demo in six years, since 2014.