WNT’s Demo Wins May Mean For Advertising Revenue For ABC

Following up on this weekend’s evening news ratings post:

“ABC’s win in the 25-54 demo, on which most news advertising is bought and sold, could shift ad dollars to ABC at a time when all the nets are spending an enormous amount to cover a string of natural disasters, as well as the ongoing war in Iraq,” Variety says.

“The ratings success takes some pressure off the search for a replacement for Peter Jennings. ABC has split anchor duties between Charles Gibson and Elizabeth Vargas as it mulls a permanent successor.”

“The close competition between NBC and ABC is already reflected in the ad market,” said John Rash, chief broadcast negotiator for media buying firm Campbell Mithun. “What’s encouraging for ABC is as they look to transition, they won’t have to rebuild but maintain.”