NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt is the #1 Most-Watched Program in all of TV for 3rd Consecutive Week

For The First Time In Nearly 7 Years, ‘Nightly’ Tops ABC For Two Weeks in Row Across the Board

‘Nightly’ Up Double Digits in All Key Measures vs. Last Year, Marks 5 Weeks of Consecutive Growth in Total Viewers  

PLUS: ‘Nightly’ Grows Nearly +10% in Total Viewers vs. 2020 Tokyo Olympics  

August 13, 2024 — NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt is the #1 most-watched program in all of TV for the week with 7.619 million viewers, excluding specials, sports & syndication. This marks the first time in three years (since 2016 Rio) Nightly News has ranked #1 for three consecutive weeks. 

As the #1 evening newscast across the board for the second week of the 2024 Paris Olympics, Nightly News also topped ABC’s World News Tonight in all key measurements for two consecutive weeks for the first time in nearly 7 years. Nightly News continues its best start of the season vs. ABC in 4 years. 

According to Nielsen Media Research, Nightly News averages 7.619 million viewers, topping ABC by + 95,000 and CBS by + 3.166 million. In the key A25-54 demo, Nightly News averages 1.474 million A25-54 viewers, leading ABC by + 467,000 and CBS by +891,000. In the A18-49 demo, Nightly News averages 1.120 million viewers, beating ABC by +433,000 and CBS by +718,000. Holt anchored every night of the broadcast in Paris from July 26 through August 9. 

Additional highlights include: 

• Saturday’s Nightly News is the #1 program in all of TV in the key A25-54 demo with 1.712 million total viewers.
• Nightly News marks its largest A25-54 audience in over two years (since 1/22.)
• In year-over-year measurements, Nightly News is the only evening newscast up across the board: +24% in total viewers, +45% in A25-54 & +65% in A18-49. This marks five consecutive weeks of Nightly News increasing total viewers and A18-49 viewers in year-over-year measurements. 
• Nightly News grew +8% in total viewers, +1% in A25-54 and +3% in A18-49 vs. the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. 
• Season to date, Nightly News closes across-the-board gaps vs. ABC: 46% in A25-54, 48% in A18-49 and 10% in total viewers. 
• Across digital, Nightly News delivered 15.7 million video viewers and 1.1 million hours viewed on & off network platforms.

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Note: ABC and CBS rated for 4 evenings (Mon-Thu), likely due to Paris 2024 Olympics coverage on NBC. NBC Nightly News, ABC World News Tonight and CBS Evening News’ ratings include afternoon and overnight airings on owned stations.