On an unusually crowded Fourth of July TV slate, ABC delivered a rankings upset.
The network’s primetime special Nashville’s Star-Spangled Bash — the finale of a 24-hour “Disney Celebrates America” programming block — outdrew the annual Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks on NBC, which is normally the highest program on Independence Day. ABC averaged 5.44 million viewers for the three-hour Star-Spangled Bash, beating the 4.94 million on-air viewers for NBC’s two-hour special.
ABC’s win marks the primary time since 2010 that a network aside from NBC has led primetime on the Fourth of July
Including replays, a Spanish-language telecast on Telemundo and streaming on Peacock, NBC claimed 11.2 million viewers for the Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks, based on early Nielsen numbers. The early tally for NBC’s first airing of the special got here in at 5.1 million viewers, adjusting right down to 4.94 million in the ultimate rankings. NBC still saw a large bump in viewers in comparison with last yr, improving by 37 percent
ABC’s special also topped Fourth of July broadcasts on Fox News (3.47 million viewers in primetime), CBS (1.99 million) and CNN (1.27 million).
The “Disney Celebrates America” stunt, which began with two primetime specials on July 3, reached 49.6 million viewers, ABC says — “reached” meaning that many individuals watched not less than a minute or two of the programming. The network also averaged 5 million viewers for the Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest (which it simulcast with ESPN2) and 4.5 million for a day special called 7 Wonders of America.
The semiquincentennial specials made for a much larger TV night than the everyday summer Saturday. Fox also had its biggest Saturday primetime baseball audience of the season with 3.34 million viewers. The large 4 networks, Fox News and CNN combined to average almost 20 million viewers in primetime.