NBA Finals, Jan. 6 hearing lead ABC to ratings win
ABC took home the crown as television's top-rated network last week behind two games of the NBA Finals series between the Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.ABC was the top-rated television network last week largely behind the NBA Finals, and its news division won bragging rights for the first prime-time hearing of the congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol.
The 5.2 million people who watched the hearing on ABC was more than any other network, and a quarter of its total audience, the Nielsen company said.
The Tony Awards reached 4.22 million viewers on Sunday, a bounce-back for Broadway after last year's show in September was seen by 2.75 million people. Last year theater was just returning from its pandemic pause.
The two games of the Golden State-Boston NBA Finals series last week both exceeded 10 million viewers, Nielsen said.
For the week, ABC averaged 4.1 million viewers in prime time. CBS had 3.3 million, NBC had 2.7 million, Fox had 1.4 million, Univision had 1.1 million, Ion Television had 1 million and Telemundo had 880,000.
Fox News Channel led the cable networks, averaging 2.23 million viewers in prime time. ESPN had 1.7 million, MSNBC had 1.39 million, HGTV had 985,000 and CNN had 829,000.
ABC's “World News Tonight” won the evening news ratings race with an average of 7 million viewers. NBC's “Nightly News” had 6 million and the “CBS Evening News” averaged 4.4 million.
For the week of June 6-12, the top 20 programs, their networks and viewerships:
1. NBA Finals: Golden State at Boston (Friday), ABC, 12.06 million.
2. NBA Finals: Golden State at Boston (Wednesday), ABC, 11.52 million.
3. “America's Got Talent,” NBC, 6.37 million.
4. “60 Minutes,” CBS, 5.42 million.
5. Jan. 6 Committee Hearing, ABC, 5.22 million.
6. Jan. 6 Committee Hearing (9-10 p.m.), MSNBC, 4.42 million.
7. “Tony Awards,” CBS, 4.22 million.
8. Jan. 6 Committee Hearing (8-9 p.m.), MSNBC, 4.19 million.
9. “FBI: Most Wanted,” CBS, 4.16 million.
10. “FBI,” CBS, 4.14 million.
11. “The Neighborhood,” CBS, 3.88 million.
12. “FBI: International,” CBS, 3.83 million.
13. “America's Funniest Home Videos,” ABC, 3.74 million.
14. “NBA Countdown” (Friday), ABC, 3.701 million.
15. Jan. 6 Committee Hearing, NBC, 3.696 million.
16. “The Price is Right,” CBS, 3.687 million.
17. “NCIS,” CBS, 3.58 million.
18. “NBA Countdown” (Wednesday), ABC, 3.53 million.
19. Jan. 6 Committee Hearing, CBS, 3.49 million.
20. “Let's Make a Deal,” CBS, 3.49 million.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.