‘CBS Evening News’ Sees Lowest Rated Q1 Since (At Least) 1992

The “CBS Evening News with Katie Couric” saw its lowest-rated first quarter among total viewers and adults 25-54 since at least 1992– as far back as Nielsen’s records for the program go.

The newscast averaged 6.43 million total viewers and 1.98 million demo viewers, down from 6.45 million and 2.02 million a  year ago (See ‘World News,’ ‘Evening News’ See Lowest Rated First Quarter Ever).

The ratings news comes as Couric remains in talks with CBS and other outlets to determine where she will end up next.

“ABC World News with Diane Sawyer” was the only evening newscast to grow in total and demo viewers year-over-year for the quarter. The program delivered its largest first-quarter audience since Q1 2008.

“NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams” remained the top-rated evening newscast for the quarter, though it was down in both total and demo viewers compared to Q1 2010. The 2010 numbers are a bit deceptive however, as the broadcast got a ratings bump last year thanks to NBC’s coverage of the Winter Olympics.

The numbers for Q1 2011:

	NBC	ABC	CBS
• Total:	9,810,000	8,650,000	6,430,000
• A25-54:	2,940,000	2,430,000	1,980,000

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