Skip to main content

Screen Wars Thought Leader Interviews are also available on

SpotifyApple PodcastGoogle Podcast
State of the Screens

Evening News Audiences Surge Amid Coronavirus. Can The Networks Keep Them?

By May 7, 2020No Comments

Broadcast evening news audience in April according to Variety:
1) ABC “World News Tonight” – 10.2M
2) NBC “Nightly News” – 9.6M
3) CBS “Evening News” – 6.7M

Total broadcast evening news audience (YoY growth) according to Nielsen:
1) April 2019 – 22M
2) 
April 2020 – 31M (↑ 42%)

Great pic: PBS’s Amna Nawaz accomplishes the impressive feat of getting her kids to stand still long enough for this picture to be taken balancing being a mom and broadcasting the news from her house!

Cable news networks by the prime-time audience in April according to The AP:
1) Fox News – 4.1M
2) MSNBC – 2.5M
3) CNN – 2.2M

Cable news networks by the prime-time audience in 2019 according to The Hill:
1) Fox News – 2.5M
2) MSNBC – 1.8M
3) CNN – 972K

Cable news share of total TV viewership according to UBS:
1) March 2019 – 11%
2) 
March 2020 – 20%

Cable news viewership by year according to Nielsen:

Flashback: Fox News’ upper hand next year: The country’s eyeballs, down to districts

Top cable news viewership by district (% of total):
1) 
Fox News – 299 (69%)
2) CNN – 63 (15%)
3) MSNBC – 1 (1%)

More #1: Comcast takes aim at CNN with NBC-Sky global news channel

More #2: Life at CNN: Skeleton Staff, Record Ratings and Vanishing Ads

Michael Beach

Michael Beach is the Chief Executive Officer of Cross Screen Media, a media analytics and software company that enables marketers to plan, activate, and measure CTV and linear TV at the local level. Michael is also the founder and editor of State of the Screens, a weekly newsletter focused on video advertising that is a must-read for thought leaders in the advertising industry. He has appeared in such publications as PBS Frontline, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Axios, CNBC and Bloomberg, and on NPR’s Planet Money podcast.