Muhammad Ali Broadcast Specials Draw 5.8 Million Saturday Night

By Chris Ariens 

Two broadcast news networks produced prime time specials about he life of Muhammad Ali last night, while a third stayed with its regularly-scheduled programming.

ABC’s 20/20 special about Ali drew 3.1 million viewers at 8 p.m. while CBS’s 48 Hours special at 9 p.m. drew 2.7 million. But it was Dateline NBC’s 2-hour Saturday Mystery that won the time period, drawing 3.4 million viewers and a .6 rating in the A18-49 demo.

48 Hours’ regular broadcast at 10 p.m. tied Dateline as the No. 1 show of the night in the demo, but, with 3.8 million viewers was most-watched.

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Elizabeth Vargas hosted the 20/20 Ali special on ABC, while Josh Elliott hosted his first prime time special for CBS, with the 48 Hours look at Ali’s life and legacy.

Ali died Friday at a hospital in Phoenix. He was 74.

ABC News programs dominated ABC’s Saturday night. A re-air of the Bernie Madoff movie, produced by ABC News’s Lincoln Square productions, aired from 9-11 p.m.

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