The Top Correspondents and Stories on Network Evening News in 2013 Were…

By Jordan Chariton 

Tom CostelloNBC News correspondent Tom Costello got the most airtime on the evening newscasts in 2013 with 303 minutes on “NBC Nightly News.” David Muir was next with 296 minutes on “ABC World News,” and NBC’s Chief Foreign Affairs correspondent Andrea Mitchell was third with 275 minutes on “Nightly.”

The numbers come from Andrew Tyndall’s 2013 review of the most-covered stories and most-used correspondents.

The Boston Marathon bombing led the way in coverage, drawing 432 minutes across the three networks. CBS and NBC led the way with 157 and 156 minutes, respectively, with ABC presenting 119 minutes of coverage.

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Tyndall was critical of ABC in this year’s report, suggesting 2013 was the year “ABC World News” “finally rejected” presenting a serious newscast.

ABC News is firing back: “Our mission is to give our viewers information that is relevant to their everyday lives,” ABC News SVP Jeffrey Schneider tells TVNewser. “Winning the Murrow for Best Newscast in 2013 and enjoying our best season in 5 years is far more meaningful than Tyndall’s method that confuses quantity with quality. ”

Tyndall, it should be noted, charges clients $15,000 for his subscription service. ABC News stopped subscribing about 10 years ago. CBS and NBC are still clients.

Rounding out the top five correspondents with the most airtime:

NBC News Chief Medical Editor Dr. Nancy Snyderman got 226 minutes of “Nightly News,” and ABC’s Chief White House correspondent Jonathan Karl occupied 224 minutes of “World News.”

As for most-covered stories: the Boston bombings were followed by coverage of federal budget and spending (405 minutes), the president’s healthcare rollout (307 minutes), the Syrian civil war (310), and tornado coverage (295). One other story of note: NSA surveillance on American citizens was the ninth most-covered story in 2013 with 210 minutes of coverage.

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