Reports indicate that CBS News is heading toward a significant decline in viewership since Bari Weiss took over as editor-in-chief, resulting in layoffs and a tumultuous atmosphere within the newsroom.
With the first quarter concluding this weekend, the “CBS Evening News” is anticipated to see its lowest viewership in the January-March time frame of this century. Data from the Status newsletter suggests a drop to an average of 4.3 million viewers, marking a 7% decrease from last year. Additionally, the key 25-54 demographic saw a notable 18% decline, dropping to 541,000 viewers.
A similar trend is observed with “CBS Mornings,” which averaged only 1.8 million viewers, a reduction of 13% compared to the previous year. The same demographic dipped by 28%, bringing in just 268,000 viewers. These figures appear to represent the poorest performance in the program’s history.
In contrast, ABC and NBC have experienced growth in viewership. ABC’s “World News Tonight with David Muir” enjoyed a viewership increase of 8%, averaging 8.7 million viewers while witnessing a slight 5% decrease in the 25-54 demo, totaling around 1.1 million viewers. NBC’s “Nightly News with Tom Llamas” also showed improvements, gaining 6% to average 7 million viewers and a 7% rise in the key demo, surpassing 1 million viewers.
The competition seems to be solidifying David Muir’s stronghold at the forefront of evening news, with ABC widening its lead over CBS and NBC to approximately 2.3 million viewers nightly, constituting the largest margin in nearly six years based on Nielsen metrics.
For the week ending March 16, Muir’s broadcast attracted 8.8 million viewers, whereas “Nightly News” trailed with 6.5 million, also falling behind in the critical demographics. Interestingly, Llamas was absent from the program for part of that week, with their shows tying in the key demographic upon his return.
ABC’s advantage has shown remarkable growth over the season, posting a lead of around 1.78 million viewers over NBC—a gap not seen in more than three decades. However, “Nightly News” has been closing in on ABC in the essential 25-54 demo, marking its closest point in six years.
The decline in CBS’s ratings is coinciding with a significant overhaul within its news division, as Weiss has recently implemented job cuts affecting roughly 6% of the workforce, amounting to around 60 to 70 individuals, and has shut down the network’s nearly 100-year-old radio division as part of cost-saving measures initiated by parent company Paramount Skydance.
These developments have reportedly created a shaken environment in CBS’s newsrooms, leading to morale issues alongside the ratings plunge, with potential further job reductions looming as contracts for high-profile talent reach expiration soon.
The struggles facing “CBS Evening News” have sparked speculation regarding the futures of top producers if viewership doesn’t rebound. The show averaged approximately 3.83 million viewers for the week concluding March 13, a concerning figure that falls below essential benchmarks.
A source within CBS remarked, “It’s a pretty dire situation. If we get below 4 million, you have to worry that we’re in a death spiral.” CBS News has yet to provide any comments regarding these developments.
