This past Tuesday, we reported that ABC World News Tonight finished the week of October 3 as the most-watched evening newscast for a third consecutive week. Starting a broadcast season with 3 straight weekly total viewer wins would have represented a feat not achieved by the program since the 1999-2000 season.
But Nielsen has adjusted those numbers because of the impact of Hurricane Matthew in a few southeastern U.S. TV markets. The new numbers show World News Tonight averaged 8.361 million total viewers, down 1 percent from the previously-reported 8.449 million. That decline may seem minuscule on the surface, but it put them in second place, to NBC’s 8.446 million. As a result, the week of Oct. 3 now represents the first across-the-board victory for NBC this season to-date.
Despite the drop, World News Tonight still managed to deliver a 5 percent increase in total viewers from the comparable week in 2015.
Due to Thursday Night Football, CBS Evening News ratings are based on 4 days (Mon-Wed and Fri).
*UPDATED evening newscast numbers for the week of Oct. 3, 2016:
| NBC | ABC | NBC | CBS |
|---|---|---|---|
| • Total Viewers: | 8,361,000 | 8,446,000 | 6,498,000 |
| • A25-54: | 1,798,000 | 2,168,000 | 1,526,000 |