NBC, ABC & CBS News Ratings: How’s Tom Llamas Doing a Year After Replacing Lester Holt?

Martin HolmesWed, June 24, 2026 at 12:54 PM UTC

246

David Muir, Tom Llamas, Tony Dokoupil - World News Tonight YouTube; Nightly News YouTube; CBS Evening News YouTube

The latest evening news ratings are in, and it's good news for NBC Nightly News anchor Tom Llamas, whose show surpassed ABC World News Tonight in the coveted Adults 25-54 demographic.

According to AdWeek, citing national live+same-day big data plus program ratings from Nielsen, NBC Nightly News averaged 6.674 million total viewers and 1.053 million demo viewers for the week of June 8. This was up 6 percent in total viewers and up 18 percent in the demo compared to the week prior.

The show moved ahead of World News Tonight in the demo thanks to an extra 92,000 viewers. Nightly News was also up in both metrics compared to the same period in 2025, increasing 18 percent in total viewers and 25 percent in the demo. It was the only newscast to post gains in both measured categories year over year.

It marks a big achievement for Llamas, who recently celebrated a year behind the Nightly News desk. Llamas took over from long-time anchor Lester Holt back on June 2, 2025. When the journalist first took the helm, he said in a statement, "Just like Lester, I promise to be devoted to our viewers and dedicated to the truth."

Despite NBC's demo victory, World News Tonight With David Muir still topped the week in total viewers. The show averaged 7.638 million total viewers and 961,000 demo viewers for the week of June 8. This was flat among total viewers and down 1 percent in the demo compared to the previous week.

Tony Dokoupil Speaks Out Amid Upheaval at CBS News

Related

Advertisement

Tony Dokoupil Speaks Out Amid Upheaval at CBS News

Compared to the year prior, World News Tonight was up 5 percent in total viewers but down 4 percent in the key demo.

It should be noted, however, that World News Tonight's weekly average is only based on the Monday, June 8 broadcast, for which Muir was off. NBA Finals and NHL Finals coverage preempted the rest of the week's programming. The average of Nightly News and CBS Evening News, on the other hand, is based on Monday to Thursday.

CBS Evening News with Tony Dokoupil averaged 3.895 million total viewers and 562,000 demo viewers for the week of June 8. This was up 2 percent in total viewers and flat in the demo compared to the week before. Compared to 2025, the show was down 6 percent among total viewers but up 3 percent in the key demo.

CBS Evening News, Weeknights, 6:30/5:30c, CBS

NBC Nightly News, Weeknights, 6:30/5:30c, NBC

ABC World News Tonight, Weeknights, 6:30/5:30c, ABC

Read the latest entertainment news on TV Insider.

Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Entertainment”