ABC’s World News Tonight with David Muir strengthened its position at the top of the U.S. evening news race during the holiday-shortened week leading into Independence Day, emerging as the only major broadcast newscast to record week-over-week gains in both total viewers and the key Adults 25-54 demographic.
The latest Nielsen Live + Same Day Big Data + Panel ratings for the week of June 29, 2026, reflect an unusual holiday schedule that impacted all three major broadcast networks. Because of the July 4 weekend, the reported averages were based on different numbers of broadcast days: ABC averaged Monday and Tuesday, NBC averaged Monday through Thursday with Hallie Jackson filling in for Tom Llamas, and CBS averaged Monday through Wednesday. Special or retitled holiday broadcasts were excluded from the official averages.
Despite those scheduling adjustments, ABC was the clear winner of the week.
ABC World News Tonight Leads Broadcast News Ratings During Holiday Week
David Muir’s ABC World News Tonight averaged 8.128 million total viewers, representing an 8% increase week-over-week and a 13% increase compared with the same week in 2025.
In the advertiser-important Adults 25-54 category, the broadcast drew 964,000 viewers, posting a 1% week-over-week gain while declining 3% year-over-year.
That performance made ABC the only major evening newscast to improve in both headline ratings categories from the previous week, reinforcing its long-standing dominance in the competitive nightly news landscape.
NBC Nightly News Holds Second Place Despite Holiday Ratings Dip
NBC Nightly News, anchored by Hallie Jackson while Tom Llamas was away, remained comfortably in second place.
The broadcast averaged 6.16 million total viewers, down 3% from the previous week but still 12% higher than the same period last year.
Among Adults 25-54, NBC delivered 856,000 viewers, a 4% week-over-week decline while recording a 12% year-over-year increase.
Although NBC experienced short-term declines during the holiday week, its annual growth continued to reflect audience gains made under Tom Llamas’ tenure.
CBS Evening News Falls Below Four Million Viewers Again
For CBS Evening News with Tony Dokoupil, the holiday week proved more challenging.
The program averaged 3.765 million total viewers, declining 6% week-over-week while posting a modest 1% year-over-year increase.
In the Adults 25-54 demographic, CBS attracted 501,000 viewers, down 13% from the previous week but up 8% compared with the same week in 2025.
The results also pushed CBS back below the 4 million total viewer mark, a threshold the network has struggled to consistently maintain.
Broadcast Evening News Ratings: Week of June 29, 2026
| Network | Total Viewers | Adults 25-54 | Week-over-Week Performance |
| ABC World News Tonight with David Muir | 8.128 million | 964,000 | Increased in both categories |
| NBC Nightly News (Hallie Jackson) | 6.16 million | 856,000 | Declined in both categories |
| CBS Evening News with Tony Dokoupil | 3.765 million | 501,000 | Declined in both categories |
Q2 2026 Ratings Show ABC Maintaining Long-Term Dominance
The latest weekly performance also aligns with broader second-quarter trends.
Across Q2 2026, ABC averaged approximately 8.2 million total viewers, an 11% year-over-year increase, alongside roughly 1.01 million Adults 25-54 viewers, remaining essentially flat from a year earlier.
NBC averaged approximately 6.35 million total viewers, improving 10% year-over-year, while its Adults 25-54 audience reached approximately 923,000, representing an 11% annual increase.
CBS averaged roughly 3.9 million total viewers, gaining 1% year-over-year, with approximately 535,000 Adults 25-54 viewers, up 2% annually.
Those quarterly figures illustrate that while ABC and NBC have both experienced meaningful audience growth over the past year, CBS continues to trail considerably despite occasional weekly improvements.
David Muir Continues to Set the Pace in Broadcast News
David Muir has remained the undisputed ratings leader in broadcast evening news for years, frequently maintaining a lead of more than 1.4 million viewers over NBC and an even larger advantage over CBS.
Meanwhile, Tom Llamas has helped NBC narrow the demographic gap during several weeks in June 2026, demonstrating stronger competitiveness among younger viewers.
For Tony Dokoupil, who took over following CBS’s newsroom revamp, the ratings remain challenging. Although the broadcast has recorded some encouraging year-over-year demographic gains and occasional weekly improvements—such as during the week of June 22—it continues to face difficulty sustaining audiences above four million viewers.
The latest holiday-week ratings underscore one consistent theme in the broadcast news battle: even amid altered schedules and seasonal viewing patterns, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir remains the benchmark against which its rivals continue to measure their performance.
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