NBC’s Coverage of Macy’s Celebration Captivates Audiences
This year, more than 8 million viewers tuned in to watch the Fourth of July fireworks on NBC, which showcased the Macy’s New York City celebration in two separate broadcasts. The two-hour fireworks display attracted 4.9 million viewers at 8 p.m. Eastern time on Sunday, while an edited version aired shortly after, drawing an additional 3.3 million viewers.
Typically, the week surrounding Independence Day sees lower television ratings. The only other program to surpass 7 million viewers in prime time was NBC’s summer hit, “America’s Got Talent.” NBC dominated the week, averaging 2.9 million viewers during prime time, followed by CBS with 2.6 million, ABC with 2.3 million, Fox with 1.6 million, Univision with 1.4 million, Ion Television with 1.1 million, and Telemundo with 1 million.
In cable ratings, TNT led with an average of 2.141 million viewers thanks to three NBA Conference Finals games, while Fox News Channel closely followed with 2.139 million viewers. Other notable cable networks included ESPN with 1.58 million, MSNBC with 1.36 million, and HGTV with 1.09 million.
ABC’s “World News Tonight” topped the evening news ratings, averaging 7.5 million viewers. NBC’s “Nightly News” followed with 6.4 million, and CBS’s “Evening News” garnered 4.8 million.
For the week of June 28 to July 4, the most popular prime time programs were as follows:
“America’s Got Talent,” NBC, 7.08 million
NBA Conference Finals: Phoenix at L.A. Clippers, ESPN, 5.86 million
NBA Conference Finals: L.A. Clippers at Phoenix, ESPN, 5.75 million
NBA Conference Finals: Atlanta at Milwaukee, TNT, 5.24 million
“Macy’s Fourth of July Fireworks,” NBC, 4.9 million
NBA Conference Finals: Milwaukee at Atlanta, TNT, 4.84 million
“60 Minutes,” CBS, 4.66 million
NBA Conference Finals: Atlanta at Milwaukee, TNT, 4.63 million
“NCIS,” CBS, 3.72 million
“The Neighborhood,” CBS, 3.64 million
“Young Sheldon,” CBS, 3.59 million
“Hannity” (Wednesday), Fox News, 3.54 million
“The $100,000 Pyramid,” ABC, 3.49 million
“FBI: Most Wanted,” CBS, 3.37 million
“The Bachelorette,” ABC, 3.32 million
“The Price is Right,” CBS, 3.29 million
“FBI,” CBS, 3.27 million
“Macy’s Fourth of July Fireworks” (Sunday, 10 p.m.), 3.252 million
“American Ninja Warrior,” NBC, 3.25 million
“Bob Hearts Abishola,” CBS, 3.21 million