Noticias Telemundo Leads Spanish-Language Television’s Coverage of Venezuela
Telemundo’s Flagship Newscast Led by Julio Vaqueiro Was the Most-Watched Program on Spanish-Language TV on Saturday
Venezuela Coverage Boosts Noticias Telemundo’s TikTok Follower Growth, Making it the Most-Followed Major U.S. News Organization on the Platform
MIAMI – January 7, 2026 – A special edition of Telemundo’s flagship newscast focused on Venezuela ranked as the most-watched program on Spanish-language television this past Saturday, according to Nielsen.
The newscast at 6:30 p.m. ET, anchored live by Julio Vaqueiro from Bogota, Colombia, delivered 367,000 adults 18-49 and 1.47 million total viewers and outperformed “Noticiero Univision” by a double-digit audience advantage across both demos (+65% and +68% respectively).
Noticias Telemundo went live to report the U.S. military strikes in Venezuela at 2:18 a.m. ET on Saturday and continued with rolling coverage until the early afternoon. During the 11 a.m. ET to 1:00 p.m. ET time block when networks carried President Donald Trump’s press conference on the U.S. military operation to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, Noticias Telemundo also held double-digit leads among P2+ and A18-49 (+43% and +36% respectively) versus Univision’s comparable coverage in the daypart.
“This is a consequential story for our audience,” said Gemma Garcia, executive vice president of Noticias Telemundo. “Our multiplatform coverage demonstrated Noticias Telemundo’s commitment to rigorous news coverage across all platforms, particularly at this critical time for the Latino community in the United States.”
Venezuela coverage drove strong engagement on Noticias Telemundo social media accounts. Videos posted on the Noticias Telemundo TikTok account on Saturday generated more than 200 million views and helped to increase the number of followers to 14.7 million. Noticias Telemundo is now the U.S. news organization with the biggest following on the platform regardless of language.
The comprehensive daylong coverage included a two-hour primetime special with the latest developments and analysis, anchored by Vaqueiro, the 2025 Emmy Award winner for outstanding journalist in Spanish-language media. The special, which aired from 9 p.m. ET to 11 p.m. ET, was the most-watched program in Spanish-language primetime, delivering 1.14 million total viewers and 274,000 adults 18-49.
Saturday’s broadcast and social performance come as Noticias Telemundo strengthens its position as a preferred news source for Latinos on linear, digital and social media platforms. In 2025, Noticias Telemundo was the only broadcast evening newscast regardless of language with year-over-year growth among adults 18-49 and total viewers (P2+), according to Nielsen.
Noticias Telemundo is the #1 most-viewed Spanish-language broadcast news account on YouTube and the most-followed U.S. broadcast news account in Spanish on Instagram. Noticias Telemundo AHORA, launched in 2024, has also quickly become a key growth driver for Telemundo’s FAST channel portfolio.
Source: Nielsen Big Data + Panel, L+SD, 1/3/26.
About NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises:
NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises leads the media industry in the production and distribution of Spanish-language content for U.S. Hispanics and audiences around the world. The company serves U.S. Hispanics through its national broadcast network, the cable network Universo, and digital platforms including the Telemundo app, a suite of FAST channels, and streaming services, such as Peacock, among others. The Telemundo Network offers Spanish-language entertainment, news, and sports content reaching 95% of U.S. Hispanic TV households in 210 markets through 30 owned stations and 91 affiliate stations. Telemundo also owns an independent station serving Puerto Rico. Anchored on Telemundo Studios, the network is the #1 producer of scripted Spanish-language content in the U.S., and the only network to produce original content specifically for US Hispanic audiences. Offering over 600 hours of reality TV shows a year, and top-rated live specials such as the Billboard Latin Music Awards and Miss Universe, Telemundo is considered the undisputed Home of Live TV in Hispanic media. The network is also the exclusive Spanish-language home of the world’s two most popular sporting events, the FIFA World Cup and the Olympic Games. NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises is a division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast Corporation.
Media Contacts:
Kevin Gray
Alejandra Merchant
