The February 2015 ratings sweeps, when local TV audiences are measured to set advertising rates, reveal a shift in Denver’s morning TV viewing habits. CBS4 jumped from fifth place to No. 2 in the 5-7 a.m. race.
Weekdays 5-7 a.m. among adults 25-54, the KUSA wake-up show leads with a 1.3 rating, down 27 percent from a year ago. (In Denver, the 17th-largest market according to Nielsen, one rating point currently represents 16,000 viewers age 25-54.) KCNC is a close second with a 0.9 rating, up 69 percent from a year ago. KMGH is a very close third with a 0.7 rating, down 10 percent from last year.
KDVR’s “Good Day Colorado” is fourth, but is beaten at 8 a.m. by sister station KWGN’s “Daybreak.” (What would happen if the duopoly joined forces in the morning? News Director Holly Gauntt is “evaluating.”)
Nationally, “CBS This Morning” posted the biggest audience in the time slot in more than 10 years, gaining 290,000 viewers while “Today” and “Good Morning America” declined in the key news demographic, adults 25-54.
“We have a symbiotic relationship with ‘CBS This Morning,’ said CBS4 News Director Tim Wieland. Locally, “the team is clicking.” The goal is to stick with harder news and information while competitors trade in lighter, more personality-driven fare in the morning.
At 10 p.m., KUSA leads with a 3.8 rating, down 25 percent from a year ago. KCNC is second with a 2.2, up 5 percent from a year ago. KMGH is third with a 1.4 rating, down 18 percent from a year ago. And KDVR will post a 0.9 rating, up 13 percent from a year earlier.
KUSA expected declines from last February due to inflated numbers for 2014’s Olympics broadcasts. Also, despite the Brian Williams debacle, “NBC Nightly News” still did a hefty number (3.83 rating), more than double the ABC and CBS network competition.
Joanne Ostrow: 303-954-1830, jostrow@denverpost.com or twitter.com/ostrowdp
