The race for morning show ratings supremacy last week ended in a split decision, as is traditionally the case these days. Good Morning America averaged the largest total audience, while Today show was top dog among adults 25-54.
GMA drew a hair under 4 million total viewers and 1.16 million A25-54 viewers for the week of April 29. In addition to winning the week in total viewers (+92,000 more than Today and +948,000 than CBS This Morning), GMA is No. 1 morning show in total viewers for the 7th consecutive year and the sixth consecutive season.
Then, there’s Today. The NBC morning show finished No. 1 among adults 25-54 for the 175th consecutive week, and gave GMA a run for its money in total viewers, winning Monday and Friday across the board. However, GMA’s margins of victory on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday proved too much for Today to steal a complete win from its ABC rival last week.
One might not be surprised to read that the morning shows lost viewers versus the comparable week in 2018. GMA was -3% in total viewers, Today was -3% in total viewers, while CBS This Morning was -6%. In the A25-54 demo, GMA was -8%, Today -9% and CBS This Morning -9% vs. the comparable week last year.
NOTE: Due to coverage of the William Barr testimony on Wednesday (5/1/19), “CBS This Morning” was retitled to “CBS This Morn.” The telecast is excluded from the weekly averages. CBS’ weekly averages are based on four days (Mon-Tue and Thurs-Fri).
Numbers for the week of April 29, 2019:
| ABC | NBC | CBS | |
|---|---|---|---|
| • Total Viewers: | 3,999,000 | 3,907,000 | 3,051,000 |
| • A25-54: | 1,161,000 | 1,273,000 | 762,000 |
Source: The Nielsen Company, NTI Total Viewers, Adults 25-54 Live + SD, 2018-19 Current Week (w/o 4/29/19), and Year-Ago Week (w/o 4/29/18). Season to date: Most Current: 2018 -2019 Season (9/24/18 – 5/5/19) and 2017-2018 Season (9/25/18 – 5/6/18). Averages based on regular telecasts.