Wins December Across the Board – Best Streak in Nearly Seven Years
Tops Competition by Double Digits in Key Demo for 4Q’18 and December
Also Wins 2018 Across the Board
JANUARY 3, 2019 – Meet the Press with Chuck Todd (MTP) was the #1 most-watched Sunday show across the board for 2018, the fourth quarter of 2018 (4Q’18) and the month of December, according to Nielsen Media Research data.
MTP won the fourth quarter of 2018 across the board. This marks the fourth straight quarter as the #1 most-watched Sunday show, as well as the first time that MTP has won all four quarters of the calendar year across the board in eight years (since 2010).
Averaging 3.321 million total viewers, MTP beat ABC’s This Week by +15 percent (+442,000) and CBS’ Face the Nation by four percent (+131,000), posting its first 4Q win among total viewers since 2011. This was MTP’s biggest 4Q total viewer win over ABC in six years and first win over CBS since 2011. Compared to the same quarter last year (4Q’17), MTP improved its total viewer lead over ABC by +13 percent.
The network broadcast topped its competition by double-digits in the key demo with an average of 837,000 A25-54 viewers: +26 percent (+170,000) more than ABC and +14 percent (+106,000) more than CBS. This is MTP’s 12th consecutive quarter win in the key demo. Compared to the same quarter last year (4Q’17), MTP improved its advantage over ABC by +55 percent, and compared to the prior quarter (3Q’18) MTP improved its lead over ABC by eight percent, delivering its biggest 4Q demo advantage over ABC since 2016.
DECEMBER
MTP was also the #1 most-watched Sunday show across the board for the month of December, winning its 13th straight month across the board – its best streak in nearly seven years (since March 2012).
Averaging 3.478 million total viewers for December, MTP beat ABC by +18 percent (+534,000) and CBS by seven percent (+232,000). Compared to last month, MTP posted the biggest month-over-month viewership increase among the Sunday public affairs broadcasts (+132,000, four percent), and increased its lead over CBS by eight percent. Compared to last year, MTP nearly doubled its margin over CBS (+97 percent), marking its best December total viewer advantage over CBS in eight years.
MTP averaged 853,000 viewers in the key 25-54 demo, leading competition by double-digits: ABC by +188,000 (+28 percent) and CBS by +99,000 (+13 percent). This is the 15th consecutive month MTP ranked #1 in viewers 25-54. The program outperformed ABC among A25-54 viewers for the 15th straight month and CBS for the 35th. MTP delivered its biggest December demo win over ABC in four years.
2018
MTP achieves a rare milestone with its first across-the-board calendar-year win in six years. The longest-running Sunday public affairs program is #1 in A25-54 for the third straight year, its best streak in six years, and #1 in A18-49 for four consecutive years. Additionally, MTP clinches the top spot in total viewers for the first time in six years, beating ABC for the fourth straight year in total viewers and CBS for the first time since 2012.
In the influential D.C. market, MTP has won every single Sunday in total viewers since March 2015, beating out ABC, CBS and Fox News Sunday across the board and widening its lead in both total viewers and the key demos vs. the prior year.
Season-to-date, MTP is the #1 most-watched Sunday show across the board, delivering its best total viewer lead over ABC in seven seasons (since 2011-12) and CBS in eight seasons (since 2010-11).
This past Sunday featured a special edition of Meet the Press focusing on climate change with exclusive interviews with Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Governor Jerry Brown. MTP was retitled this past Sunday, December 30.
Tune into MSNBC’s MTP Daily weekdays at 5 p.m. for more from moderator Chuck Todd, and follow the show on Facebook and on Twitter for the latest.
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For more information contact:
Joya Manasseh
NBC News
o: (212) 664-2498
c: (917) 587-1284
e: joya.manasseh@nbcuni.com
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MEET THE PRESS WITH CHUCK TODD
Meet the Press with Chuck Todd is where newsmakers come to make news — setting the political agenda and spotlighting the impact Washington decision-making has on Americans across the country. It is the #1 most-watched Sunday public affairs show for the 2017-2018 season, reaching more than three million viewers every Sunday and millions more through social, digital and on-demand platforms. Meet the Press brings its authority and influencer interviews to MSNBC with MTP Daily weekdays at 5 p.m. ET and to the 1947: The Meet the Press Podcast. It’s the longest-running show in television history, recently expanding its brand to include a political short-documentary film festival in collaboration with the American Film Institute. Chuck Todd is the political director of NBC News and the moderator of Meet the Press; John Reiss is the executive producer.
