Scores 3 Months of Consecutive Year-Over-Year Growth Across the Board
Delivers Closest Demo Gap vs. ABC in 6 Years for Current Season
‘Nightly News’ Remains Only Evening Newscast Marking Across-the-Board Viewership Growth vs. Last Season
Week of April 20 Highlights
- Nightly News scores its 12 straight weeks of across-the-board growth vs. last year
- Nightly News delivers its best streak of year-over-year growth for total viewers since August 2020 and for A25-54 viewers since June 2020
- Nightly News is the only evening newscast to grow across the board vs. last season
- Nightly News closes the year-over-year demo gap vs ABC by 17%, 12th consecutive week of narrowing gap
- Nightly News continues to deliver its closest demo gap vs. ABC in six years for the current season
Week of April 20 Stats
- Averages 6.2 million total viewers, topping CBS by +2.397 million (+64%)
- Increases total viewership vs. last year by +269,000
- Grows total audience season to date by +99,000
- Averages 831,000 A25-54 viewers, beating CBS by +364,000 (+78%)
- Increases A25-54 viewers vs. last year by +102,000
- Narrows the A25-54 gap vs. ABC by 17% vs. last year
- Nightly News’ A25-54 gap vs. ABC is 44% better vs. prior year at this point in the season, marking its closest demo gap vs. the network in 6 years
- Nightly News is the only evening newscast to grow vs. last season, +51,000
- Averages 612,000 A18-49 viewers, beating CBS by +303,000 (+98%)
- Increases A18-49 viewers vs. last year by +106,000
- Narrows the A18-49 gap vs. ABC by 30% vs. last year
- Nightly News’ A18-49 gap vs. ABC is 29% better vs. prior year at this point in the season
- Nightly News is the only evening newscast to grow in A18-49 viewers vs. last season, +48,000
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WEEK OF 4/20/2026
| Program | P25-54 | P18-49 | P2+ |
| Imps | Imps | Imps | |
| NBC NIGHTLY NEWS | 831 | 612 | 6,168 |
| CBS EVENING NEWS | 467 | 309 | 3,771 |
| ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT | 1,056 | 778 | 8,537 |
Nielsen Big Data + Panel, L+SD, Week of 4/20/2026. Average audience based on regularly-titled telecasts only.
Note: NBC Nightly News was retitled on Monday and Tuesday due to live sports impact (NBA playoffs airing across the U.S. in primetime).
ABC World News Tonight was retitled on Thursday and Friday due to Days #1 and #2 of the NFL Draft in primetime.
CBS Evening News was retitled on Friday.
