Back to you, Ron and Kathy.
Chicago news viewers remained faithful to WLS-Channel 7 in the just-finished May sweeps, giving the ABC-owned station a decisive Nielsen victory in all local news time periods from morning to night.
Whatever momentum WMAQ-Channel 5 may have gained in February from the Winter Olympics and Jimmy Fallon’s “Tonight Show” debut appears to have dissipated. Despite the strength of NBC’s prime-time performance in May, the station’s local newscasts finished no better than second and, in some cases, third.
In the marquee ratings race at 10 p.m. weekdays, ABC 7 led the market with a 9.1 rating (321,594 households), followed by NBC 5 with a 5.9 rating (208,506 households) and CBS-owned WBBM-Channel 2 with a 3.6 rating (127,224 households.) At 9 p.m. weekdays, Tribune Broadcasting WGN-Channel 9 had 4.1 rating (144,894 households), and Fox-owned WFLD-Channel 32 had a 2.2 rating (77,748 households).
“It’s very gratifying to do well in such a highly competitive news market like Chicago,” Jennifer Graves, vice president and news director of ABC 7, said in a statement Thursday. “Our team is always pushing to provide the best possible news coverage day in and day out. I’m also grateful to the incredibly loyal ABC 7 viewers.”
Among adults between 25 and 54 — the demographic most coveted by advertisers — ABC 7 "Eyewitness News" also finished first at 4, 5, 6 and 10 p.m.
But the must-watch “WGN Morning News” continued to show impressive growth too, tying ABC 7 for first place among 25-to-54 viewers from 4 to 6 a.m., and leading everyone in the adult demo for the full six-hour time period from 4 to 10 a.m.