Another week, another first place split in the morning show ratings race.
Good Morning America was the most-watched morning show for the week of Oct. 19 (3.45 million total viewers), while Today averaged the most adults 25-54 (1.03 million).
This is according to Nielsen live-plus-same-day for the fifth week of the 2020-2021 season.
By averaging 1.03 million adults 25-54 this past week, Today has now finished No. 1 (either outright or in a tie) in the A25-54 category for 61 consecutive weeks.
The NBC morning show performed quite well relative to the prior week (Oct. 12, 2020). Among adults 25-54, Today was +6%, and in total viewers, the program was +2%. However, compared with the year-ago week (Oct. 21, 2019), Today was -15% in total viewers and -18% in the A25-54 demo.
To be fair, Today aired its star-studded October to Remember broadcast that week in 2019, which featured special guest appearances by Michelle Obama, Tom Hanks, Monica Lewinsky, Michael Jordan, Victoria Beckham, Julie Andrews, Eddie Murphy, Magic Johnson and Lin-Manuel Miranda. No chance Today wasn’t going to match that audience this past week.
Over on ABC, GMA outperformed Today by an average of +205,000 total viewers. However, it averaged -71,000 adults 25-54 than its NBC morning competitor, despite posting a four-week high in the measurement (965,000).
GMA was flat in total viewers, but +3% among adults 25-54 versus the previous week. Unfortunately, the year-over-year trend wasn’t as great. The broadcast was -9% in total viewers and -17% in adults 25-54 compared to the same week in 2019.
CBS This Morning averaged 2.6 million total viewers and 602,000 A25-54 viewers. The 602,000 A25-54 total is -7% from the previous week (Oct. 12). However, the 2.61 million total viewer count represents +1% growth. Compared to the week of Oct. 21, 2019, CTM was -6% in total viewers and -19% in adults 25-54.
Live-plus-same-day numbers for the week of Oct. 19
| ABC | NBC | CBS | |
|---|---|---|---|
| • Total Viewers: | 3,451,000 | 3,246,000 | 2,611,000 |
| • A25-54: | 956,000 | 1,027,000 | 602,000 |