Score one for Brian Williams (sort of). As network news broadcasts hemorrhage viewers, the anchor got a little bit of good news this week. With an average 9.2 million viewers tuning in, his NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams beat ABC’s World News with Charles Gibson and CBS’ Evening News with Katie Couric in the November ratings race. Nielsen also reports that Williams is tops (albeit barely—Gibson lagged by only one tenth of a ratings point) with the ever-desirable 25-54 demographic.
Pop-culture junkies might think that Williams’ surprisingly funny Nov. 3 stint hosting Saturday Night Live is what pushed him into first place (it certainly won me over, and here I’d written him off as insufferable soon after he inherited Brokaw’s chair). That said, the numbers show that Williams actually lost total viewers in the year since the sweeps period of November 2006.
Now, here’s the thing: Do you know anyone who tunes in, with any regularity, to the evening news to catch up on current events? I don’t. Who can wait till dinnertime to digest the news of the day? That’s what bookmarks on your browser are for! Which makes me wonder: How long before network news broadcasts can no longer measure viewership in the millions and decide to just throw in the towel (to the mournful wails of traditionalist news junkies)?
And far be it from me to be glib about the format’s grim future (much respect, ghost of Edward R. Murrow), but Williams really should keep those comedy chops honed. You never know when an Anchorman sequel will start shooting—could there be any more perfect casting than NBC’s newsman as Will Ferrell’s next gravitas-gifted nemesis?
Brian Williams was just really funny when he hosted SNL. I totally can understand why his ratings went up.
FREE CHEESY BREAD!!
i don’t watch the nightly news, but i’ve loved brian williams ever since i saw him on the daily show years ago. and how he later refused to do the giant talking head joke that ted koppel was willing to do. i can’t remember which one it was though.
I don’t watch any news unless there is a huge national story. I am online all day and I can get the news as it happens all day. I do however love the fake news (Stewart/Colbert).
I have noticed that I tend to even skip over alot of the stores in the paper if I think they don’t look updated from my last check online. There is nothing I lover more than to sit down and peruse 3-4 newspapers everyday with a cuppa joe, but I am starting to flip through much more lately.
Yes, we do watch the NBC Nightly News every evening – my husband is on the road selling all day and wants to watch a half hour of national news to balance the conservative talk radio he listens to all day. And I like to see my news rather than read about it in headlines. Broadcast news is NOT dead, at least not for those of us over 30.
Uh, Lori, I’ve been over 30 for a while now, and have no interest in broadcast news, unless there’s some huge, breaking event.
I actually do watch the NBC Nightly News. I’m 34, and currently, a stay-at-home mom, so I don’t have the time to catch up on the national news on the internet lately. I watch Brian Williams, because I do prefer him to Charles Gibson, so I can at least get some news in the background of my head. If something intrigues me, I’ll pay closer attention. If not, it’s back to blocks and books.
Also, CBS doesn’t transmit their national news in HD, and NBC does. That, to me, makes for a more professional-looking broadcast. Oh yeah, and I just don’t like Charlie Gibson.
This is the same Patty that posted below – I am 43. What is 30 the new 60 to you people?
I was a big fan of NBC night news when Tom Brokaw anchored the show. I had my reservations when Brian Williams took over Dec. 2004. When Charlie Gibson came on board at night this past year, I switched. You can tell that he, like Peter Jennings, doesn’t need to read the monitor to report the news. He’s very off-the-cuff. He comes off like your friendly neighbor. He doesn’t talk down to the viewer, he talks to the viewer. I always enjoyed Charlie on GMA and I feel he is worthy of his seat at ABC World News. Between him and Brian, Charlie is deserving of the #1 slot. He’s earned it and it delivers the news well, clear and to the point. He comes from the mold of the traditional seasoned anchorman. Williams doesn’t seem to have earned his stripes by being on CNBC.
Charlie has. NBC had to put Williams on SNL to boost ratings after Gibson clearly swiped viewers. Overall, Gibson’s show continues to grow in total viewers compared to last Nov. 2006 while Williams is down by 300,000.
I’m 46. I stopped watching network news years ago. I can’t stand fearmongering local news. I get my news from news websites, weekly news magazines and The Daily Show/Colbert Report(Please come back)
I know my Seventy year old parents still watch an hour and a half of news every evening.
He was HILARIOUS on SNL. I’ve been waiting for someone to post about it. When he came to the door as the man who won the sweepstakes and then the free cheesy bread, I was doubled over. The only funny guest this year.
Don’t play the “you can get your news faster from other sources” card when you write for a weekly magazine that writes about current events in the entertainment world. I read EW for its quality, and I watch NBC Nightly News for the same reason. Yeah, I may have heard about something earlier in the day, but I’d rather watch NBC’s professional take on it than some blog or the 24-hr news channels.
Oh by the way, I’m 22 – so it does have at least one younger viewer.
(WEll mike you are getting this info from a website. So.) i’ve subscribed since freshman year collge (1999 ) and i don’t remember ever seeing pop watch articles like these in the magazine (which i love BTW! stephen king!). ya know there are some ew items of information that are just internet-available, just in case you didn’t know. brian williams is funny as a host for SNLive but i only ever watched him at my parents’. i check the local gainesville sun online and that’s the news for me! plus the “onion” …..kidding!
I agree with the 22-year old that said he wants quality. I know I do as well at the national level and it’s very difficult to get that on cable news. I faithfully watch World News and I’m a 26-year-old internet junkie. Gibson’s broadcasts don’t have an entertainment/tabloid feel to it, which is a breath of fresh air IMO. I don’t know, I just feel like network nightly news broadcasts have more integrity.
Of the clips I saw of BW on SNL, he was actually pretty funny. Then again, he’s been funny on Conan in the past.
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