# 1 in A25-54 for 33 Months and 136 of Last 139 Weeks
#1 in A18-49 for 11 Straight Quarters, 35 Months and 92 of Last 93 Weeks
April 3, 2018 – “NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt” ranked #1 in the demo for the first quarter of 2018, averaging 2.1 million A25-54 viewers, leading ABC by +119,000 (+6%) and CBS by +627,000 (+43%). “Nightly News” has won eleven consecutive quarters in the demo, leading in the A25-54 category for every quarter since Lester Holt took over as anchor. “Nightly News” improved its demo lead over CBS, posting its highest Q1 advantage in seven years.
“Nightly News” averaged 1.5 million A18-49 viewers for Q1 2018, topping ABC by +134,000 (+10%) and CBS by +466,000 (+46%). The NBC News broadcast has won eleven consecutive quarters in the A18-49 demo. 8.9 million total viewers tuned into “Nightly News” this quarter, topping CBS by +2.0 million (+29%). Total viewership for “Nightly News” was up in 1Q vs prior year.
For March 2018, “Nightly News” averaged 1.9 million A25-54 viewers, +52,000 (+3%) more than ABC and +498,000 (+35%) more than CBS. The NBC News broadcast ranks #1 in A25-54 for 33 consecutive months. This past month, the broadcast averaged 1.3 million A18-49 viewers, +69,000 (+5%) more than ABC and +375,000 (+39%) more than CBS. “Nightly News” ranks #1 in A18-49 for 35 consecutive months. 8.3 million total viewers tuned into “Nightly News” this month, topping CBS by +1.8 million (+28%).
For the week of March 26, “Nightly News” averaged 1.9 million A25-54 viewers leading ABC by +173,000 (+10%) and CBS by +576,000 (+43%). “Nightly News” improved its lead over ABC by +22% (+31,000) and CBS by +30% (+133,000) vs. the prior week and saw its best advantage over ABC in six weeks. Year over year, “Nightly News” improved its advantage over ABC by +50% (+58,000) and CBS by +33% (+143,000).
Among A18-49, “Nightly News” averaged 1.3 million viewers for the week, topping ABC by +146,000 (+12%) and CBS by +414,000 (+45%). The NBC News broadcast has ranked #1 in A25-54 for 136 of the past 139 weeks and A18-49 for 92 of the last 93 weeks. 8.3 million total viewers tuned in to “Nightly News” for the week of March 26 besting “CBS Evening News” by +2.1 million total viewers (+35%). Year over year, “Nightly News” is up across-the-board and posting the highest growth among A25-54 and A18-49 viewers
“Nightly News” continues as the #1 most-watched evening newscast season-to-date in the key demo, delivering its largest demo lead over CBS in seven seasons.
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Q1 Highlights:
- “Nightly News” averaged 2.1 million A25-54 viewers, outperforming ABC by +119,000 (+6%) and CBS by +627,000 (+43%).
- “Nightly News” ranked #1 in A25-54 for the 11th consecutive quarter.
- “Nightly News” averaged 1.5 million A18-49 viewers, +134,000 (+10%) higher than ABC and +466,000 (+46%) better than CBS.
- “Nightly News” ranked #1 in A18-49 for the 11th consecutive quarter.
- “Nightly News” averaged 8.9 million total viewers, leading CBS by +2.0 million viewers (+29%)
- Total viewership for “Nightly News” was up in 1Q vs prior year.
March 2018 Highlights:
- “Nightly News” averaged 1.9 million A25-54 viewers, outperforming ABC by +52,000 viewers (+3%) and CBS by +498,000 (+35%).
- “Nightly News” has ranked #1 in A25-54 for 33 consecutive months.
- “Nightly News” averaged 1.3 million A18-49 viewers, topping ABC by +69,000 (+5%) and CBS by +375,000 (+39%)
- Among A18-49 viewers, Nightly News is #1 for 35 consecutive months.
- “Nightly News” averaged 8.3 million total viewers, besting CBS by +1.8 million (+28%).
Weekly Highlights:
- “Nightly News” averaged 1.9 million A25-54 viewers, outperforming ABC by +173,000 viewers (+10%) and CBS by +576,000 (+43%).
- “Nightly News” has ranked #1 in A25-54 for 136 of the past 139 weeks.
- “Nightly News” averaged 1.3 million A18-49 viewers, topping ABC by +146,000 (+12%) and CBS by +414,000 (+45%).
- Among A18-49 viewers, Nightly News has won 92 of the last 93 weeks.
- “Nightly News” averaged 8.3 million total viewers, beating CBS by +2.1 million (+35%).
- “Nightly News” improved its A18-49 viewer lead over ABC by +40% (+42,000) and CBS by +48% (+135,000) vs. the prior week and saw its best advantage over ABC in five weeks.
- Year over year, “Nightly News” improved its A25-54 viewer advantage over ABC by +50% (+58,000) and CBS by +33% (+143,000).
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 March 26 – March 30, 2018:
| Total Viewers | A25-54 Rating | A25-54 Viewers | A18-49 Rating | A18-49 Viewers | |
| NBC | 8.268 | 1.59 | 1.923 | 1.03 | 1.326 |
| CBS | 6.142 | 1.12 | 1.347 | 0.71 | 0.912 |
| ABC | 8.586 | 1.45 | 1.750 | 0.92 | 1.180 |
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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:
TJ Ducklo
NBC News
212-664-1913
Rachel Zuckerman
NBC News
212-664-3996
