Auds skip Sawyerless 'GMA'
Eye's 'Early' up in households, viewers
With Sawyer out for the week and viewers snoozing late because of daylight saving time, ABC News' "Good Morning America" posted its lowest household ratings since July 4, 2000 -- when Sawyer and co-host Charlie Gibson were on vacation.
According to Nielsen numbers for the week ending April 6, "GMA" posted a 3.1/13 with an average audience of 3.6 million viewers, down 24% in households and 20% in total viewers compared to the same week a year ago. Elizabeth Vargas was subbing for Sawyer. Ratings for ayem shows have historically dipped the week following the switch to daylight saving time.
Meanwhile, CBS' "Early Show" posted a 2.2/9 with an average of 2.5 million viewers, a 16% increase in households and a 15% jump in total viewers compared with the same week last year.
Category leader NBC News' "Today" posted a 4.8/20 with an average of 5.7 million viewers, down 6% in households and 3% in total viewers. The week marked "Today's" highest margin of victory in viewers over "GMA" since the week of Jan. 8.
"GMA" was hurt most in the key women 18-49 category, where it dipped 32% (1.3/11 from 1.9/16) from last year, while "Early" jumped 38% (1.1/10 from 0.8/7), marking the smallest gap between the two shows ever in the demo. Still a clear No. 1 in all demos, "Today" outperformed "Early" and "GMA" combined in the demo with a 2.8.
Among women 25-54, "GMA" was down 29% (1.7/13 from 2.4/17) compared with the same week last year, while "Early" improved by a whopping 40% (1.4/10 from 1.0/7), marking the smallest gap in the demo between the two shows ever. With a 3.5, "Today" topped the combined delivery of "GMA" and "Early" in the demo.
In adults 25-54, "GMA" was down 22% (1.4/12 from 1.8/15), while "Early" saw a 25% gain (1.0/9 from 0.8/7) compared with the same week last year. Once again, "Today" bested them both combined with a 2.7 in the demo.
