Why Network News Still Matters

[Commentary] The saturated news media coverage of the events leading to NBC’s suspension of the anchor Brian Williams left many people wondering what all the fuss was about. In the age of digital, fragmented media, who watches network news, anyway? The answer may surprise you. More Americans turn to the network evening news to find out what’s happening than to any other type of news except for local news. Broadcast news remains a focal moment for many people in the evening.

Pew’s Project for Excellence in Journalism estimates that in 2013 roughly 8.5 million viewers tuned in to at least a portion of the NBC’s evening news broadcast each night. By comparison, cable news audiences are much smaller. The median prime-time audience for Fox News, the largest draw among the cable news providers, was just under two million viewers, according to Pew and Nielsen. Network audiences may be shrinking, but cable has a way to go before it catches up with broadcast news in terms of number of viewers, which is why the news about “NBC News” generated worldwide attention. Network news still rules the airwaves.

[Lynn Vavreck is a Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Los Angeles]