America’s No. 1 Morning News Program Tops GMA By 965k For the Week 

For the 2007/08 Season “Today” Led GMA By More Than One Million Total Viewers 

NEW YORK – September 25, 2008 – NBC News’ “Today” continues as the morning news leader, attracting 5.3 million viewers for the week - a 965K (22%) lead over GMA, and 2.6 million (96%) more than “The Early Show.” The win marked “Today’s” 667th week in first place. 

For the 2007/08 season, “Today” topped second-place GMA by 23% (1.03 million) total viewers and by 31% in A25-54. “Today” widened its advantages over GMA year-to-year” in homes (from 14% up to 23%), total viewers (from 14% up to 23%), in A25-54 (27% up to 30%), and A18-49 (from 28% up to 36%). During the season, “Today” added 103k total viewers (a gain of 2%) to its audience versus the comparable period last season. 

For the week of September 15 - September 21, “Today” led with a 4.0 household rating/14 share and 5.3 million viewers. GMA trailed with a 3.3/12 and 4.3 million viewers. CBS’ “The Early Show” remained in third place with a 2.1/7 household rating and 2.7 million viewers. 

In rating A25-54, “Today” led GMA by 33 percent (5 tenths) and topped The Early Show by 100 percent (1 full ratings points). In rating A18-49, “Today” outperformed GMA by 36 percent (4 tenths) and “The Early Show” by 114 percent (8 tenths). 

“Today II” posted a 2.3/9 and nearly 3.0 million viewers, outperforming The Early Show in total viewers and homes. “Today III” delivered a 1.3/5 and more than 1.5 million viewers. 

On its digital platforms, “Today” continued its strong performance during the week ending September 20 with more than 5.6 million online streams. TODAYshow.com’s stories, blog, message boards and live votes were also popular with users. 

From an NBC press release:

BROADCAST WINS THE WEEK ENDING SUNDAY, SEPT. 21 2008 AND CONTINUES TO DOMINATE BOTH NATIONALLY AND IN WASHINGTON, D.C. 

(New York) – September 25, 2008 – According to Nielsen Media Research data, “Meet the Press” was the most-watched Sunday morning public affairs program, winning the week ending Sunday, Sept. 21, 2008. The program was No. 1, averaging 3.562 million total viewers, +15 percent more (+478,000) than second place ABC’s “This Week” 3.084 million, a +31 percent advantage (+848,000) over third place CBS’ “Face the Nation” 2.714 million and a +153 percent lead (+2,154,000) over FOX News Sunday’s 1.408 million. “Meet the Press” has now placed first in total viewers for 102 consecutive weeks and 366 of the past 367 weeks (when everyone is at full coverage). On cable, CNN’s “Late Edition” averaged 1,036,000 viewers and the rebroadcasts of “Meet the Press” on MSNBC delivered an additional 690,000 viewers. 

In Washington, D.C., “Meet the Press” beat the competition with 126,000 viewers (4.8/13 HH), a +133 percent advantage over ABC’s 54,000 (2.0/5), a +94 percent lead over CBS’s 65,000 (2.4/6), and +174% more than FOX’s 46,000 viewers (1.7/5). 

In homes nationally, the NBC program was No. 1, posting a 2.6 rating and 8 share. ABC came in second with a 2.3 rating and 7 share, CBS in third with a 2.0 rating and 6 share and FOX placed last with a 1.0 rating and 3 share. “Meet the Press” has now placed first in households for 102 straight weeks and 462 of the past 463 weeks (when everyone is at full coverage). 

Among adults 25-54, the NBC Sunday morning show tied with ABC and CBS for first with a 0.9 rating. FOX came in last with a 0.4. In rating A25-54, “Meet the Press” topped FOX by +125% (+5 tenths). 

The program is up across the board in key demographics versus the same telecast last season and compared to the full 2007/08 season. For the full 2007/08 season, “Meet the Press” leads second-place “This Week” by 44% in total viewers and +41% in A25-54. 

Due to Ryder Cup coverage on the network, “Meet the Press” had abnormal start times in some markets. Last week’s guests were Secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulson and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. The roundtable was Steve Pearlstein of the Washington Post, and CNBC’s Steve Liesman and Erin Burnett. 

On its digital platforms, “Meet the Press” continued its strong performance during the week ending September 20 with over 335,000 online streams and more than 183,000 downloads. The “Meet the Press” video podcast (available at www.mtp.msnbc.com) remains the top ranked network Sunday Morning program podcast on iTunes. 

Tom Brokaw is the interim moderator of “Meet the Press.” Betsy Fischer is the executive producer and Michelle Jaconi and Rebecca Samuels are the producers. 

Nielsen TV Ratings Data: ©2008 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved.

ABC via press release spins the Sunday Morning News ratings:

(For Sunday, September 21)

                           TOTAL VIEWERS       A25-54 MM/Rtg

ABC "THIS WEEK"              3,080,000         1,150,000/.9

CBS "FACE THE NATION"        2,710,000         1,080,000/.9

NBC "MEET THE PRESS"         3,560,000         1,140,000/.9

FOX "FOX NEWS SUNDAY"        1,410,000           550,000/.4

Source: NTI 

(Average for 07/08 Season)

                           TOTAL VIEWERS       A25-54 MM/Rtg

ABC "THIS WEEK"              2,730,000           990,000/.8

CBS "FACE THE NATION"        2,650,000           960,000/.8

NBC "MEET THE PRESS"         3,940,000         1,400,000/1.1

FOX "FOX NEWS SUNDAY"        1,350,000           610,000/.5

Source: NTI 

(Average for 3rd Quarter)

                           TOTAL VIEWERS       A25-54 MM/Rtg

ABC "THIS WEEK"              2,710,000           950,000/.8

CBS "FACE THE NATION"        2,600,000           920,000/.7

NBC "MEET THE PRESS"         3,750,000         1,340,000/1.1

FOX "FOX NEWS SUNDAY"        1,300,000           550,000/.4

Source: NTI

Nielsen TV Ratings Data: ©2008 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved.

Read the full story

According to Nielsen Media Research data, “Meet the Press” was the most-watched Sunday morning public affairs program, winning the week ending Sunday, Sept. 14, 2008 in all categories. The program was No. 1, averaging 4.035 million total viewers, +12 percent more (+439,000) than second place ABC’s “This Week” 3.596 million, a +20 percent advantage (+660,000) over third place CBS’ “Face the Nation” 3.375 million and a +164 percent lead (+2,505,000) over FOX News Sunday’s 1.530 million. “Meet the Press” has now placed first in total viewers for 101 consecutive weeks and 365 of the past 366 weeks (when everyone is at full coverage). On cable, CNN’s “Late Edition” averaged 1,274,000 viewers and the rebroadcasts of “Meet the Press” on MSNBC delivered an additional 1,095,000 viewers.

In Washington, D.C., “Meet the Press” beat the competition with 128,000 viewers (5.0/12 HH), a +228 percent advantage over ABC’s 39,000 (2.0/5), a +94 percent lead over CBS’s 66,000 (2.2/5), and +191% more than FOX’s 44,000 viewers (1.7/4).

In homes nationally, the NBC program was No. 1, posting a 2.9 rating and 8 share. ABC came in second with a 2.6 rating and 7 share, CBS in third with a 2.3 rating and 6 share and FOX placed last with a 1.1 rating and 3 share. “Meet the Press” has now placed first in households for 101 straight weeks and 461 of the past 462 weeks (when everyone is at full coverage).

Among adults 25-54, the NBC Sunday morning show tied ABC for first with a 1.2 rating. CBS came in second with a 1.1 and FOX came in last with a 0.6. In rating A25-54, “Meet the Press” topped CBS by +9% (+1 tenth) and FOX by +100% (+6 tenths).

The program is up in key demos compared to its 3Q’08 average and compared to the same telecast last season the program is up double digits across the board. Season-to-date, “Meet the Press” leads second-place “This Week” by 45% in total viewers and +42% in A25-54.

Last week’s guests were McCain supporter and Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, Obama supporter and New York Senator Chuck Schumer, The Washington Post’s Bob Woodward and NBC News’ Political Director Chuck Todd.

On its digital platforms, “Meet the Press” continued its strong performance during the week ending September 13 with over 474,000 online streams and more than 224,000 downloads. The “Meet the Press” video podcast (available at www.mtp.msnbc.com) remains the top ranked network Sunday Morning program podcast on iTunes.

Tom Brokaw is the interim moderator of “Meet the Press.” Betsy Fischer is the executive producer and Michelle Jaconi and Rebecca Samuels are the producers.

via NBC press release.

Nielsen TV Ratings Data: ©2008 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved.

NBC News’ “Today” continues its ratings dominance with a strong win over the competition. For the week ending September 14, “Today” was No. 1 with 5.4 million total viewers – a 979k (22 percent) lead over GMA, and a 2.53 million (89 percent) lead over “The Early Show.” Compared to the same week last season, “Today’s” total viewer advantage over GMA grew from 12% up to 22%. This week’s win marks “Today’s” 666th consecutive week in first place.

Season-to-date, “Today” has added 107,000 total viewers (a gain of 2%) to its audience versus the comparable period last season. “Today” has now extended its season advantage over GMA to 1,033,000 total viewers. Season-to-date, “Today” has increased its advantages over GMA in homes (from 14% up to 23%), total viewers (from 15% up to 23%), A18-49 (from 29% up to 36%) and A25-54 (from 27% up to 30%). “Today’s” advantages were also up in W18-49 (from 17% up to 29%), M18-49 (from 50% up to 57%) and W25-54 (from 17% up to 23%). Week-to-week, “Today” improved 5% in rating W18-49, 7% in rating A18-49, and 4% in rating A25-54.

For the week, “Today” led with a 4.1 household rating/15 share and 5.4 million viewers. GMA trailed with a 3.4/12 and 4.4 million viewers. CBS’ “The Early Show” remained in third place with a 2.2/8 and 2.8 million viewers.

In rating A25-54, “Today” led GMA by 25 percent (4 tenths) and topped the “Early Show” by 100 percent (1 ratings point). In rating A18-49, “Today” outperformed GMA by 33 percent (4 tenths) and “The Early Show” by 129 percent (9 tenths).

“Today II” posting a 2.5/10 in homes and 3.1 million viewers, outperforming “The Early Show” in homes, total viewers, and all key demos. “Today II” also topped “The View” in M25-54. Week-to-week, “Today II” increased in homes (4%), total viewers (2%), and A25-54 (11%).

For the week, “Today III” delivered a 1.5/6 in homes and 1.8 million viewers. “Today III” increased versus the prior week in homes (7%), total viewers (3%), M/A18-49 (33%/20%), and M25-54 (67%). On Friday, “Today III” averaged 2.15 million total viewers, its best single day, non-holiday delivery since March 21, 2008.

On its digital platforms, “Today” continued its strong performance during the week ending September 13 with more than 6.7 million online streams . TODAYshow.com’s stories, blog, message boards and live votes were also popular with users.

via NBC Press Release.

Nielsen TV Ratings Data: ©2008 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved.

NBC News’ “Today” continues its ratings surge with another million-plus win over the competition. For the week ending September 7, “Today” was No. 1 with 5.6 million total viewers – a 1.22 million (28 percent) lead over GMA, and a 2.66 million (100 percent) lead over “The Early Show.” Excluding the Olympics, “Today” posted its biggest total viewer audience since the week of June 2, 2008 and its best advantage since the week of May 26, 2008. “Today” widened its total viewer gap over GMA by 4% versus the prior week while topping GMA by at least 1 million total viewers on all rated mornings last week. This week’s win marks “Today’s” 665th consecutive week in first place. 

Week-to-week, “Today” improved 2% in homes, 4% in total viewers, and 5% in A25-54. Season-to-date, “Today” has added 110,000 total viewers (a gain of 2%) to its audience versus the comparable period last season. “Today” has now extended its season advantage over GMA to 1,035,000 total viewers, its highest level this season. Season-to-date, “Today” has increased its advantages over GMA in homes (from 14% up to 23%), total viewers (from 15% up to 23%), A18-49 (from 28% up to 36%) and A25-54 (from 26% up to 30%). “Today’s” advantages were also up in W18-49 (from 17% up to 29%), M18-49 (from 50% up to 57%) and W25-54 (from 17% up to 23%). 

For the week, “Today” led with a 4.3 household rating/15 share and 5.6 million viewers. “GMA” trailed by large margins with a 3.3/12 and 4.3 million viewers. CBS’ “The Early Show” remained far behind in third place, with a 2.2/8 and 2.8 million viewers. 

In rating A25-54, “Today” led GMA by 33 percent (5 tenths) and beat the “Early Show” by 100 percent (1 ratings point). In rating A18-49, “Today” outperformed GMA by 36 percent (4 tenths) and Early Show by 114 percent (8 tenths). 

“Today II” posting a 2.4/9 in homes and 3.1 million viewers. It continues to top “CBS Early Show” in total viewers, homes and key demos. “Today II” also topped “The View” in M25-54. Compared to its pre-Olympic 3Q’08 average, “Today II” improved in W/A18-49 (10%/14%). 

“Today III” posted its best delivery in W18-49 since the week of April 28, 2008, M25-54 since the week of July 14, 2008, and A25-54 since the week of May 26, 2008. “Today III” increased versus the prior week in total viewers (6%) and rating W18-49 (14%). “Today III” also posted growth in rating W18-49 (14%) versus its STD average. For the week, “Today III” delivered a 1.4/6 in homes and 1.8 million viewers. 

On its digital platforms, “Today” continued its strong performance during the week ending September 6 with more than 6.8 million online streams . TODAYshow.com’s stories, blog, message boards and live votes were also popular with users.

via NBC press release.

Nielsen TV Ratings Data: ©2008 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved.

According to Nielsen Media Research data, “Meet the Press” was the most-watched Sunday morning public affairs program, winning the week ending Sunday, Sept. 7, 2008 in all categories. The program was No. 1, averaging 4.266 million total viewers, +30 percent more (+990,000) than second place ABC’s “This Week” 3.276 million, a +48 percent advantage (+1,383,000) over third place CBS’ “Face the Nation” 2.883 million and a +185 percent lead (+2,767,000) over FOX News Sunday’s 1.499 million. “Meet the Press” has now placed first in total viewers for 100 consecutive weeks and 364 of the past 365 weeks (when everyone is at full coverage). On cable, CNN’s “Late Edition” averaged 1,058,000 viewers and the rebroadcasts of “Meet the Press” on MSNBC delivered an additional 1,090,000 viewers. 

In Washington, D.C., “Meet the Press” beat the competition with 143,000 viewers (4.7/12 HH), a +134 percent advantage over ABC’s 61,000 (2.2/6), a +155 percent lead over CBS’s 56,000 (1.8/5), and +72% more than FOX’s 83,000 viewers (3.0/8). 

In homes nationally, the NBC program was No. 1, posting a 3.1 rating and 9 share. ABC came in second with a 2.3 rating and 6 share, CBS in third with a 2.1 rating and 6 share and FOX placed last with a 1.1 rating and 3 share. “Meet the Press” has now placed first in households for 100 straight weeks and 460 of the past 461 weeks (when everyone is at full coverage). 

Among adults 25-54, the NBC Sunday morning show again placed first with a 1.2 rating. ABC came in second with a 0.9, CBS came in third with a 0.8 and FOX came in last with a 0.6. In rating A25-54, “Meet the Press” topped ABC by +33% (+3 tenths), CBS by +50% (+4 tenths) and FOX by +100% (+6 tenths). 

Compared to the same telecast last season and its 3Q’08 average, the program is up double digits across the board. Season-to-date, “Meet the Press” leads second-place “This Week” by 46% in total viewers and +43% in A25-54. 

Last week’s show broadcast live from Wilmington, Delaware, and the guests were Democratic Vice Presidential Nominee Sen. Joe Biden and New York Times columnist and best-selling author Tom Friedman. 

On its digital platforms, “Meet the Press” continued its strong performance during the week ending September 6 with over 251,000 online streams and more than 153,000 downloads. The “Meet the Press” video podcast (available at www.mtp.msnbc.com) remains the top ranked network Sunday Morning program podcast on iTunes.

via NBC press release.

Nielsen TV Ratings Data: ©2008 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved.