1 in Key A25-54 Demo in September, Best Advantage Over ABC in 11 Months

#1 in A18-49 in September, Biggest Lead Over ABC in 7 Months

Delivers 5th Straight September Win in A25-54

Also Tops ABC for Another Straight Week in A25-54, Best Streak in 40 Weeks

October 1, 2019 – NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt is the #1 most-watched evening newscast in September and continues to widen its demo lead over ABC, according to Nielsen Media Research. Nightly News wins its fifth straight September in the key demo and posts its biggest A25-54 demo advantage over ABC in eleven months and its best A18-49 demo lead over them in seven months. Nightly News also wins the week of Sept. 23 with its best weekly A25-54 demo streak in 40 weeks.

For the month of September, Nightly News averages 1.617 million viewers in A25-54, the demo most valued by advertisers, topping ABC by +81,000 (+5%) and CBS by +649,000 (+67%). NBC’s signature newscast also leads in the younger A18-49 demo with 1.114 million, beating ABC by +22,000 (+2%) and CBS by +427,000 (+62%).

For the week of Sept. 23, Nightly News averages 1.583 million viewers in A25-54, topping ABC by +62,000 (+4%) and CBS by +678,000 (+75%). Additionally, the newscast is also #1 in A18-49 with 1.106 million, leading ABC by +21,000 (+2%) and CBS by +480,000 (+77%).

Last week, Lester sat down with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson in his first U.S. network television interview. Additionally, Nightly News featured Richard Engel’s first on-camera interview with Ukraine’s former Prosecutor General Yuri Lutsenko and Cynthia McFadden’s exclusive investigative report on some black market THC vaping cartridges that had contaminants including vitamin E acetate, pesticides, and hydrogen cyanide.

September 2019:

Nightly News is #1 in A25-54

• Nightly averages 1.617 million A25-54 viewers, ahead of ABC by +81,000 (+5%) and CBS by +649,000 (+67%)
• Best advantage over ABC in 11 months (since Oct. 2018)
• 5^th straight September win and 3^rd consecutive A25-54 monthly win

Nightly News is #1 in A18-49

• Nightly averages 1.114 million A18-49 viewers, ahead of ABC by +22,000 (+2%) and CBS by +427,000 (+62%)
• Biggest advantage over ABC in 7 months (since Feb. 2019)

Program	P25-54 Imps	P18-49 Imps	P2+ Imps
NBC NIGHTLY NEWS	1.617	1.114	7.423
CBS EVENING NEWS	0.968	0.687	5.137
ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT	1.536	1.092	8.183

Note: Nightly News ratings are comprised of telecasts with regular titling and include overnight airings on owned stations.

WEEK OF 9/23/2019:

Nightly News is #1 in A25-54 and A18-49

• Nightly averages 1.583 million A25-54 viewers, ahead of ABC by +62,000 (+4%) and CBS by +678,000 (+75%)
• Best A25-54 demo streak in 40 weeks   
• Nightly averages 1.106 million A18-49 viewers, ahead of ABC by +21,000 (+2%) and CBS by +480,000 (+77%)

Program	P25-54 Imps	P18-49 Imps	P2+ Imps
NBC NIGHTLY NEWS	1.583	1.106	7.275
CBS EVENING NEWS	0.905	0.626	5.064
ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT	1.521	1.085	7.959

Note: Nightly News ratings are comprised of telecasts with regular titling and include overnight airings on owned stations.

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NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt is the most-watched evening newscast in America among the key news demo, and reaches over 24 million people every week through its broadcast and millions more through NBCNews.com, the Nightly News app, The Nightly newsletter and social media platforms. The broadcast provides the latest on the day’s top stories, going beyond the headlines to uncover how people’s lives are affected by the world around them. Lester Holt is the anchor, and was named the most-trusted television news personality in America, according to The Hollywood Reporter/Morning Consult 2018 survey.  Jennifer Suozzo is the executive producer.

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For more information, contact:

Dana Klinghoffer
NBC News
212.664.4088
dana.klinghoffer@nbcuni.com