Tim Russert moderated Meet the Press longer than any other person in the programs’s history. When he took over in 1991, the program ranked third in the ratings behind ABC and CBS.
As of last week, Meet the Press has finished first place on Sunday morning in Total Viewers for 89 consecutive weeks, and 353 out of the past 354 (when all shows are in full coverage).
In May, MTP won the sweep period for the 42nd consecutive sweep. It was the best Total Viewer delivery for the program since 2004.
The New York Times’ Brian Stelter writes, “NBC calls ‘Meet the Press’ the ‘longest-running program ever on network television.’ In promotional material, it notes that President John F. Kennedy once called the program the ‘fifty-first state.’ The show takes great pride in booking all major political candidates and every president of the United States.”
Chris Wallace, who anchored the Meet the Press for a year in the late 1980s and now hosts competitor show, FOX News Sunday, said, “Tim reinvented the Sunday talk show.”