Advertising & Media
NBC's Today Ends GMA's 14-Year Reign as Top Morning Show
NBC's Today dethroned GMA after 14 years, averaging 2.948 million viewers, but slipped in the A25-54 demo while GMA grew on both measures and CBS Mornings fell.
NBC News' Today ended ABC News' Good Morning America's 14-year run as the No. 1 morning news show, capturing the top spot in total viewers for the 2025-2026 TV broadcast season.
The win marks Today's most-watched broadcast season in four years. The program also held first place in the advertiser-coveted Adults 25-54 demo, a position it has held continuously for 11 seasons.
The picture is not entirely rosy for NBC, however. Today joined CBS News' CBS Mornings in shedding viewers year over year in the demo. GMA was the only program to grow in both measured categories, while CBS Mornings was the only one to lose viewers in both.
According to Nielsen Media Research, Today averaged 2.948 million total viewers and 612,000 A25-54 viewers for the season. The newscast grew +13% in total viewers to take the top spot, but slipped -2% in the demo compared with the prior season.
GMA averaged 2.831 million total viewers and 477,000 A25-54 viewers, up +7% in total viewers and +1% in the demo versus 2024-2025. Nielsen notes that year-over-year comparisons are based on Big Data+Panel (2026) vs. Panel (2025) measurements.
CBS Mornings finished the season with 1.77 million total viewers and 278,000 A25-54 viewers. It fell -9% in total viewers and -20% in the demo year over year — the only broadcast with losses on both measures.
Q3 2026: The Gap Narrows
Today remained the most-watched morning broadcast in total viewers and the A25-54 demo in the third quarter of 2026. But GMA closed the gap: just 45,000 viewers separated the two telecasts.
The summer news cycle was lighter than in previous years, with the FIFA World Cup 2026, America's 250th Independence Day celebrations and ongoing concerns about the American economy and the Middle East dominating coverage. All three morning shows declined in both measured categories during the quarter.
Today drew 2.804 million total viewers and 581,000 A25-54 viewers in Q3. Versus the second quarter, it fell -7% in total viewers and -8% in the demo. Against the same period in 2025, it gained +15% in total viewers and +7% in the demo.
GMA averaged 2.759 million total viewers and 459,000 A25-54 viewers. Quarter over quarter, it was down -3% in total viewers and -2% in the demo. Year over year, it rose +6% in total viewers and held flat in the demo.
CBS Mornings ranked third with 1.636 million total viewers and 254,000 A25-54 viewers. It dropped -7% in total viewers and -11% in the demo versus Q2, and fell -9% and -15%, respectively, versus Q3 2025 — again the only broadcast to lose viewers year over year on both measures.
Week of September 14: An Early O'Donnell Bump for CBS?
Norah O'Donnell's return to CBS Mornings may be paying immediate dividends. For the week of Sept. 14, CBS Mornings was the only telecast to grow in both total viewers and the A25-54 demo, according to Nielsen's national live+same-day big data plus program ratings.
CBS Mornings averaged 1.694 million total viewers and 283,000 A25-54 viewers, up +3% in total viewers and +15% in the demo week over week. Versus the same week in 2025, it was still down -7% in total viewers and -8% in the demo.
Today remained the most-watched show in both categories, with 2.819 million total viewers and 594,000 A25-54 viewers. It slipped -1% in both measures week over week, but gained +12% in total viewers and +2% in the demo versus the same week last year.
GMA averaged 2.66 million total viewers and 443,000 A25-54 viewers, down -3% in total viewers and -9% in the demo versus the previous week. Year over year, it grew +3% in total viewers but fell -8% in the demo.
With GMA closing to within 45,000 viewers of Today in Q3 and CBS Mornings posting the only double-digit demo gain after O'Donnell's arrival, the 2026-2027 morning wars open with all three broadcasts facing live questions about momentum.
Source: Adweek
Elena Vasquez
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Senior reporter covering media and advertising at Marketing Herald.
