Broadcast and Local Stations Dominated Midterm Election News Viewership
A report by Madhive Maverick AI indicates that broadcast and local television stations captured 48% of total news viewing during primetime on November 3, the night of the midterm elections. This figure represents a significant increase from the 29% share these outlets typically hold on regular Tuesdays. In contrast, cable news saw its share drop to 41% from its usual 55%, and streaming news experienced an 11% decrease. NBC News led all broadcasters, attracting an average of 6.8 million viewers during its primetime coverage. The report also highlighted that by 10 p.m. ET, over half of all active televisions were tuned to news, a fourfold increase compared to a typical Tuesday evening. Between 8 p.m. and midnight ET, news programming accounted for half of all total TV viewing, a substantial rise from the usual one in seven. Spanish-language TV's share of growth nearly doubled to 7.6%, making up 25% of all minutes viewed in California.
