Press release - Ratings
October 22, 2026
ABC NEWS WINS ACROSS FRIDAY NIGHT, SUNDAY MORNING AND LATE-NIGHT
‘20/20’ Is Friday’s No. 1 Newsmagazine Across the Board, Outdelivering NBC’s ‘Dateline’ by Double Digits in Total Viewers, Adults 25-54 and Adults 18-49 for the Third Week in a Row
‘This Week with George Stephanopoulos’ Ranks No. 1 in Total Viewers for the Second Week in a Row, Drawing Its Largest Overall Audience in Three Months
‘Nightline’ Leads NBC’s ‘Late Night with Seth Meyers’ Across the Board, Improving Week to Week and Year to Year in All Key Demos

“20/20”
ABC News’ “20/20: The Suitcase Murders” ranked as Friday’s No.1 newsmagazine in Total Viewers (3.067 million), Adults 25-54 (576,000) and Adults 18-49 (393,000) on Oct. 16, 2026, based on Live+Same Day Big Data Plus Panel Program Ratings from Nielsen Media Research.
- “20/20” outperformed NBC’s “Dateline” by double digits in Total Viewers (+40%/+1.000 million – 3.067 million vs. 2.067 million), Adults 25-54 (+58%/+212,000 – 576,000 vs. 364,000) and Adults 18-49 (+43%/+118,000 – 393,000 vs. 275,000) for the third straight week.
- “20/20” was up week to week in Total Viewers (+9% – 3.067 million vs. 2.815 million) and Adults 25-54 (+6% – 576,000 vs. 541,000), posting its best news demo performance in 5 months — since 5/15/26.
- For the third consecutive week, “20/20” turned in double-digit gains on the year-ago telecast in all key target demos: Total Viewers (+18% – 3.067 million vs. 2.605 million), Adults 25-54 (+36% – 576,000 vs. 426,000) and Adults 18-49 (+44% – 393,000 vs. 273,000).
- Season to date, “20/20” leads “Dateline” by double digits in Total Viewers (+25%/+739,000 – 3.740 million vs. 3.001 million), Adults 25-54 (+16%/+92,000 – 666,000 vs. 574,000) and Adults 18-49 (+11%/+46,000 – 474,000 vs. 428,000), based on Most Current Big Data+Panel Ratings. In addition, “20/20” is improving versus the comparable weeks last season in Total Viewers (+9%/+309,000 – 3.740 million vs. 3.431 million), Adults 25-54 (+26%/+138,000 – 666,000 vs. 528,000) and Adults 18-49 (+31%/+113,000 – 474,000 vs. 361,000).
ABC News’ “20/20” is the No. 1 award-winning primetime program anchored by David Muir and Deborah Roberts. A proven leader as a long-form newsmagazine for almost 50 years, “20/20” features unforgettable, character-driven true-crime mysteries, exclusive newsmaker interviews, hard-hitting investigative reports, and in-depth coverage of high-profile stories. Janice Johnston is the executive producer. The two-hour “20/20” events air Fridays from 9-11 p.m. ET on ABC and are available to stream on ABC News digital platforms, Disney+ and Hulu.
“This Week with George Stephanopoulos”
On Sunday, Oct. 18, 2026, “This Week with George Stephanopoulos” ranked No. 1 in Total Viewers (2.684 million) for the second week in a row, based on Live+Same Day Big Data Plus Panel Program Ratings from Nielsen Media Research.
- “This Week” turned in Total Viewers gains both week to week (+5% – 2.684 million vs. 2.548 million) and year to year (+7% – 2.684 million vs. 2.498 million), drawing its largest overall audience in 3 months — since 7/19/26.
- Season to date, “This Week” is posting across-the-board increases compared to the same point last season: Total Viewers (+10% – 2.562 million vs. 2.321 million), Adults 25-54 (+9% – 380,000 vs. 349,000) and Adults 18-49 (+18% – 278,000 vs. 236,000).
| Sunday, Oct. 18, 2026 | TOTAL VIEWERS | ADULTS 25-54 (000) | ADULTS 18-49 (000) |
| ABC “THIS WEEK” | 2,684,000 | 399,000 | 257,000 |
| NBC “MEET THE PRESS” | 2,409,000 | 342,000 | 267,000 |
| CBS “FACE THE NATION” 1 & 2 | 2,614,000 | 418,000 | 376,000 |
| FOX “FOX NEWS SUNDAY” | 915,000 | 213,000 | 148,000 |
NOTE: CBS’ numbers are based on averages for both “Face the Nation” and “Face the Nation-2.” CBS’ “Face the Nation” 1 and 2 began on 4/1/12.
George Stephanopoulos is anchor, Martha Raddatz is chief global affairs correspondent and co-anchor, and Jonathan Karl is chief Washington correspondent and co-anchor of “This Week.” Jon Schlosberg is the executive producer.
“Nightline”
ABC News’ “Nightline” averaged 1.162 million Total Viewers, 223,000 Adults 25-54 and 148,000 Adults 18-49 for the week of Oct. 12, 2026, based on Live+Same Day Big Data Plus Panel Program Ratings from Nielsen Media Research, leading NBC’s “Late Night with Seth Meyers” across the board.
- “Nightline” improved week to week by double digits in Total Viewers (+22% – 1.162 million vs. 952,000), Adults 25-54 (+42% – 223,000 vs. 167,000) and Adults 18-49 (+52% – 149,000 vs. 98,000).+
- “Nightline” saw gains on the same week last year in Total Viewers (+20% – 1.162 million vs. 969,000), Adults 25-54 (+9% – 223,000 vs. 205,000) and Adults 18-49 (+4% – 149,000 vs. 143,000).
- Season to date, “Nightline” (1.141 million, 220,000, and 147,000, respectively) leads NBC’s “Late Night with Seth Meyers” (1.049 million, 213,000, and 141,000, respectively) in Total Viewers, Adults 25-54, and Adults 18-49 for the 2nd consecutive year. In addition, “Nightline” is improving in Total Viewers (+4% – 1.141 million vs. 1.099 million) compared to the same point last season to its largest overall audience in 7 years – since the 2019-2020 season.
NOTE: For the week, NBC’s “Seth Meyers” was retitled to “Seth Meyers-SM.”
WEEK OF OCT. 12, 2026:
| PROGRAM AVERAGES | TOTAL VIEWERS | A25-54(000)/RTG | A18-49(000)/RTG |
| ABC’s “Nightline” | 1,162,000 | 223,000/0.2 | 149,000/0.1 |
| NBC’s “Late Night” | 660,000 | 130,000/0.1 | 82,000/0.1 |
ABC News’ “Nightline” is late-night television’s prestigious, award-winning news program featuring the most powerful, in-depth stories that shape our lives and the world around us. It is anchored by Juju Chang and Byron Pitts. Eman Varoqua is executive producer. The program airs weeknights from 12:35-1:05 a.m. ET on ABC. “Nightline” has also produced numerous original documentaries available on ABC News’ digital platforms, Disney+ and Hulu.
Source: Nielsen, Total Viewers and Adults 25-54; Live+SD 10/18/26, 10/12/26 and 10/19/25 for “This Week with George Stephanopoulos.” Beginning 9/29/25, “This Week” includes airings on ABCNL, including distributors such as YouTube and Roku. Season to date: Most Current Data Stream: 2026-2027 Season (9/21/26 – 10/18/26) and 2025-2026 Season (9/22 – 10/19/25). For “Nightline,” Current Week (w/o 10/12/26), Previous Week (w/o 10/5/26) and Year-Ago Week (w/o 10/13/25). Season to date: Most Current Data Stream: 2026-2027 Season (9/21 – 10/11/26) and 2025-2026 Season (9/22 – 10/12/25). Season averages based on Big Data Plus Panel ratings start with the 2023-2024 season. For “20/20”, Total Viewers, Adults 25-54 and Adults 18-49 National Live + Same Day Big Data Plus Panel Program Ratings for current week telecast (10/16/26), previous week (10/9/26) and year-ago telecast (10/17/25). Season to date: Most Current Data Stream: 2026-2027 Season (9/21 – 10/18/26) and 2025-2026 Season (9/22 – 10/19/25). “20/20” includes airings on ABCNL, including distributors such as YouTube and Roku. Beginning 12/26/22, averages are based on Big Data Plus Panel ratings. Beginning 8/31/20, national ratings also include Out-of-Home (OOH) viewing. Prior to 8/31/20, ratings did not include OOH viewing. Averages based on regular telecasts.
*COPYRIGHT ©2026 American Broadcasting Companies, Inc. All photography is copyrighted material and is for editorial use only. Images are not to be archived, altered, duplicated, resold, retransmitted or used for any other purposes without written permission of ABC News. Images are distributed to the press to publicize current programming. Any other usage must be licensed.
Media Contacts
You must be logged in to view this content. Please log in or create an account.