WTAE newscasts jump in ratings

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Never say never. A year ago, when the May Nielsen ratings period concluded, WTAE-TV’s newscasts were down precipitously. Although station executives rarely comment on specifics, it didn’t take much to connect the dots. WTAE had fired popular anchor Wendy Bell in late March 2016, and viewers showed their displeasure by tuning out.

Perhaps overall brand loyalty has won out over personal preference. The latest Nielsen ratings data for April 27-May 24 is in, and WTAEshowed demographic (adults 25-54) gains across the board.

Demographic ratings points represent a percentage of persons 25-54, and each point represents 10,860 persons.

Starting with the early morning newscasts, WTAE bounced back from third to first in households — which represent roughly 1.1 million television households in the Pittsburgh market. In the coveted adult demo category, WTAE jumped from third to first at 5 a.m. and second to first at 6 a.m.

WPXI-TV remains mostly in the middle, winning neither the morning nor the later newscasts but not far behind in any category. Its Channel 11 News at 10 on WPGH-TV remains the leader at 10 p.m.

KDKA-TV continues to lead households at noon, 4 p.m., 5 p.m., 6 p.m. and 11 Household ratings points represent a percentage of the roughly 1.1 million TV households in this market. Demographic ratings points represent a percentage of persons 25-54, each point represents 10,860 persons.

include just the first half-hour of a one-hour newscast. percentage of TV sets in use. p.m. (It also leads in demo, with the exception of 11 p.m., where WPXI is first).

Viewership has fallen from February ratings numbers for everyone — a common occurrence once the weather becomes nice. But

Source: Nielsen Media Research Post-Gazette

the big-picture news is how the margins are tightening among the three local stations.