"ABC World News" Continues to Close Viewership Gaps with "NBC Nightly News" by Double Digits Year-to-Year and Season-to-Date

Year-to-Year, ABC Slashes Total Viewer Gap with NBC by 29% and Demo Gap by 39%  

 Season-to-Date, "World News" Has Cut the Demo Gap with NBC to the Smallest Margin in 3 Years  

For the week of January 9, 2012, "ABC World News with Diane Sawyer" averaged 8.29 million Total Viewers and a 1.8 rating/6 share/2.18 million among Adults 25-54, according to Nielsen Media Research.  Posting week-to-week increases in Total Viewers (+4%) and Adults 25-54 (+4%) to hit a season-high in overall viewers, "World News" scored its most-watched week in nearly 10 months - since w/o 3/21/11. "World News" drew its two most-watched telecasts of the season on Monday (8.77 million - 1/9/12) and Thursday (8.78 million - 1/12/12).   

Compared to the same week last year, "World News" narrowed its margins with "NBC Nightly News" by double-digits among both Total Viewers (-29% - 969,000 vs. 1.37 million) and Adults 25-54 (-39% - 352,000 vs. 573,000).  This marks the 10th time in the last 11 weeks that "World News" has cut its year-earlier gaps with the NBC program among Total Viewers and the 11th straight week in Adults 25-54.

"World News" has cut its season-to-date gaps with "NBC Nightly News" by double-digits in both Total Viewers (-20%) and Adults 25-54 (-26%), posting its smallest news demo margin (324,000) with the NBC program in 3 years - since the 2008-09 season.

"ABC World News" outperformed the "CBS Evening News" by 1.28 million Total Viewers and by 59,000 Adults 25-54.

"ABC World News with Diane Sawyer" airs at 6:30 p.m., (ET) on the ABC Television Network.  Michael Corn is the executive producer of the broadcast.

EVENING NEWS (Week of January 9, 2012)

  Total Viewers      Adults 25-54    Households
       
ABC       8,292,000 1.8/6;  2,177,000   5.5/10
NBC   9,261,000 2.1/7;  2,529,000   6.1/11
CBS   7,010,000 1.8/6;  2,118,000   4.7/ 8

Source: The Nielsen Company, NTI Total Viewers and Adults 25-54 Live + SD weeks of 1/9/12, 1/2/11 & 1/10/11.  Most Current - 2011-2012 Season (9/19/11 - 1/15/12) and 2010-2011 Season (9/20/11 - 1/16/11).