Ranks #1 in A18-49 for 112 of Last 113 Weeks
Grows Week-Over-Week in Total Viewers
Week Includes Holt Anchoring Live from Puerto Rico on Latest Maria Devastation
Holt Anchors Live From Las Vegas for Mandalay Bay Shooting With Live, Updated Broadcast for West Coast Viewers
NEW YORK (October 3, 2017) – “NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt” kicked off the 2017-2018 season winning the key demo for the week of September 25, marking its 67th straight week as the #1 most-watched evening broadcast, according to Nielsen Research Data.
On Monday, September 25, Holt anchored the broadcast from the ground in Puerto Rico. He is the only network anchor so far to report from the island, devastated after Hurricane Maria. Coverage continued Tuesday, September 26 when he anchored from the 165th Airlift Wing at the Savannah Air National Guard Base in Savannah, Ga. It was the third hurricane Holt has traveled into the field to cover, as he was the first anchor on the ground in Texas to cover Hurricane Harvey and anchored five consecutive broadcasts in Florida for Hurricane Irma in addition to contributing to NBC News’ special reports and coverage.
The broadcast continues its winning streak in the key demo averaging 1.8 million A25-54 viewers, beating “ABC World News Tonight” by +72,000 viewers (+4%) and “CBS Evening News” by +503,000 viewers (+38%).
For 112 of the past 113 weeks, Nightly News was also the most-watched among A18-49 viewers, averaging 1.3 million and topping ABC by +115,000 viewers (+10%) and CBS by +386,000 viewers (+42%).
7.8 million total viewers tuned in to Nightly News for the week of September 25. Nightly News bested “CBS Evening News” by +1.8 million total viewers (+29%) and grew its week-over-week total audience.
The broadcast also outpaces the competition on social media with more followers on Facebook and a fivefold advantage in Twitter engagement compared to ABC’s “World News Tonight.”
On Monday, October 2, Holt anchored a one-hour extended “NBC Nightly News” broadcast on the Mandalay Bay Casino shooting on the ground in Las Vegas. He will anchor from Las Vegas again this evening, updating the broadcast live for the West Coast.
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Weekly Highlights:
- Nightly News averaged 1.8 million A25-54 viewers, outperforming ABC by +72,000 viewers (+4%) and CBS by +503,000 (+38%).
- Nightly News has ranked #1 in A25-54 for 67 consecutive weeks.
- Nightly News averaged 1.3 million A18-49 viewers, topping ABC by +115,000 (+10%) and CBS by +386,000 (+42%).
- Among A18-49 viewers, Nightly News has won 112 of the last 113 weeks.
- Nightly News averaged 7.8 million total viewers, besting CBS by +1.8 million (+29%).
Week of September 25 – September 29, 2017:
| Total Viewers | A25-54 Rating | A25-54 Viewers | A18-49 Rating | A18-49 Viewers | |
| NBC | 7.829 | 1.51 | 1.824 | 1.01 | 1.297 |
| CBS | 6.077 | 1.09 | 1.321 | 0.71 | 0.911 |
| ABC | 8.211 | 1.45 | 1.752 | 0.92 | 1.182 |
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ABOUT NBC NIGHTLY NEWS WITH LESTER HOLT
NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt is the most-watched evening newscast in America, providing the very latest on the day’s top stories and going beyond the headlines to add context and analysis to the most pressing issues of our times. NBC Nightly News reaches more than 24 million people every week through its broadcast and millions more through NBCNews.com, the Nightly News app, and social media platforms. Lester Holt is the anchor, and Sam Singal is the executive producer.
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For more information contact:
Rachel Zuckerman
NBC News
212-664-3996
