More Americans Watched NBC News’ Coverage of Trump’s State of the Union – Led by Holt – Than Any Other Network
Ahead of Super Bowl LII, Holt Anchored on the Ground from Minneapolis
Broadcast Continues Key Demo Winning Streak, Longest in More Than Four Years
#1 Most-Watched Among A25-54 and A18-49 Viewers for 130 of Last 131 Weeks
FEBRUARY 6, 2018 – “NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt” is the #1 most-watched evening broadcast in the key news demo for the week of January 29, according to Nielsen Media Research data.
On Tuesday, January 30, Holt anchored “NBC Nightly News” from Washington D.C. and led the network’s State of the Union primetime coverage, winning as the #1 most-watched broadcast network across the board. Leading up to Super Bowl LII, Holt anchored the broadcast from Minneapolis: from Nicollet Mall on Friday, February 2 and inside U.S. Bank Stadium on Saturday, January 3. Last week’s broadcast also featured the first interview with the Hawaii resident who triggered the false missile alarm as well as exclusive reporting on the president’s gripes against FBI acting director Andrew McCabe, who stepped down Monday.
The broadcast continues its winning streak in the key demo, averaging 2.0 million A25-54 viewers and beating “ABC World News Tonight” by +116,000 viewers (+6%) and “CBS Evening News” by +583,000 viewers (+40%).
For 130 of the past 131 weeks, “Nightly News” is the most-watched among A18-49 viewers, averaging 1.4 million and topping ABC by +139,000 viewers (+11%) and CBS by +398,000 viewers (+39%).
8.8 million total viewers tuned in to “Nightly News” for the week of January 29 besting “CBS Evening News” by +1.9 million total viewers (+28%).
“Nightly News” continues as the #1 most-watched evening newscast season-to-date in the key demo, delivering its largest demo lead CBS in seven seasons.
The broadcast also continues to dominate its competition on social media with more followers on Facebook and a 1.5x advantage in Twitter engagement compared to “CBS Evening News.”
Follow “Nightly News” on Twitter and on Facebook for the latest, and tune in as Holt anchors live from Pyeongchang, South Korea beginning this Thursday, Feb. 9 for the 2018 Winter Olympics.
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Weekly Highlights:
- “Nightly News” averaged 2.0 million A25-54 viewers, outperforming ABC by +116,000 viewers (+6%) and CBS by +583,000 (+40%).
- “Nightly News” has ranked #1 in A25-54 for 85 consecutive weeks.
- “Nightly News” marked the longest key demo winning streak in more than four years.
- “Nightly News” averaged 1.4 million A18-49 viewers, topping ABC by +139,000 (+11%) and CBS by +398,000 (+39%).
- Among A18-49 viewers, Nightly News has won 130 of the last 131 weeks.
- “Nightly News” averaged 8.8 million total viewers, beating CBS by +1.9 million (+28%).
Season Highlights:
- “Nightly News” is the #1 evening newscast this season in A25-54 and A18-49
- “Nightly News” holds its largest A25-54 demo advantage over CBS in seven seasons.
Week of January 29 – February 2, 2018:
| Total Viewers | A25-54 Rating | A25-54 Viewers | A18-49 Rating | A18-49 Viewers | |
| NBC | 8.759 | 1.68 | 2.030 | 1.11 | 1.427 |
| CBS | 6.869 | 1.20 | 1.447 | 0.80 | 1.029 |
| ABC | 9.267 | 1.59 | 1.914 | 1.00 | 1.288 |
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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
