It was a good start to the month for the Sunday public affairs programs. Each averaged more total viewers on May 1, 2016 than on the previous Sunday (April 24, 2016) and on the comparable Sunday in 2015 (May 3, 2015).
CBS’ Face the Nation was No. 1 in total viewers for May 1, 2016. The original broadcast delivered over 3.62 million total, a 7.5 percent increase from the April 24, 2016 episode and a 22 percent improvement from the comparable Sunday episode in 2015. FTN finished No. 3 in the news demo. The 848,000 viewers represents a 4 percent improvement from the previous Sunday but an 8 percent decline from the comparable Sunday in 2015. FTN seems to be losing a bit of the news demo when compared with last year.
Meet The Press with Chuck Todd was the No. 1 Sunday public affairs program with A25-54 viewers for the ninth straight week. The program delivered over 1 million viewers from the news demo on May 1, a 6 percent improvement from the previous Sunday and a 48 percent improvement from the comparable Sunday in 2015. MTP took No. 2 in total viewers (3.53 million), a 6 percent improvement from previous Sunday and a 38 percent improvement from the comparable Sunday in 2015.
With rebroadcasts on NBC network and on MSNBC, Meet the Press was watched by an addition 1.35 million total viewers and 421,000 in the news demo.
It was a strong Sunday for This Week with George Stephanopoulos. The program delivered 3.282 million total viewers, a 13 percent improvement from the previous Sunday and a 28 percent improvement from the comparable Sunday in 2015. This Week finished No. 2 in the news demo (924,000). The 924,000 viewers in the demo represents a 12 percent increase from the previous Sunday and a 20 percent increase from the comparable Sunday in 2015.
Fox News Sunday also had a big week. The original May 1 broadcast delivered 1.614 million total viewers and 482,000 in the news demo. The 1.614 million is an 19 percent improvement from the April 24 average and a 24 percent improvement from the comparable Sunday in 2015. FNS performance in the news demo is even more noteworthy. The episode improved 31 percent in the demo from the previous Sunday and 38 percent from the comparable Sunday in 2015.
Cable replays of Fox News Sunday on Fox News Channel averaged a combined 2,536,000 total viewers and 482,000 viewers 25-54 for the 2 p.m. ET, 6 p.m. ET and 2 a.m. ET replays.
If we put all of this together, the Sunday May 1 edition of Fox News Sunday delivered 4.15 million total viewers and 964,000 viewers in the news demo.
Last but not least, Univision’s Al Punto averaged 716,000 total viewers and 315,000 viewers in the news demo on May 1. The 315,000 average is a 35 percent improvement from the May 3, 2015 episode.
*Face the Nation is based on the first half-hour only, as the full contiguous hour aired in 78.31% of the country.
The national averages for May 1:
| Network | Program | Total Viewers | A25-54 |
|---|---|---|---|
| CBS | Face the Nation | 3.624 M | 848,000 |
| NBC | Meet the Press | 3.531 M | 1.053 M |
| ABC | This Week | 3.282 M | 924,000 |
| FOX | Fox News Sunday | 1.614 M | 482,000 |
| UNIV | Al Punto | 716,000 | 315,000 |