Morning TV Wars Heat Up As NBC, CBS Gain On ABC's 'GMA'

It took 16 years for ABC’s “Good Morning America” to end the historic streak by NBC’s “Today” as the most-watched program in morning television in 2012.

The LA Times reports toppling the mighty “Today” was so significant that Ben Sherwood, the network’s news president at the time, was elevated to run parent company Disney’s entire TV operation in 2014.

But the race has tightened considerably over the last year. “Good Morning America” is still the most popular show overall in the 2016-17 TV season, averaging 4.65 to million viewers compared with 4.53 million for “Today.” But NBC has topped “GMA” twice in overall viewers in the last five weeks and has led among the 25-to-54 age group most important to TV news advertisers for more than a year. “GMA” is off 8% in the demographic this fall while NBC has remained flat. Last season, “GMA” was down 19%.

Walt Disney Co.-owned ABC is also looking over its shoulder at “CBS This Morning.” The trio of Gayle King, Charlie Rose and Norah O’Donnell is up 6% this season to 3.68 million viewers. Among viewers ages 25 to 54, CBS is up 12% and less than 400,000 viewers behind “GMA” in the category — the network’s best competitive showing in the morning in more than 20 years.

ABC's Tom Chibrowski

The three programs are the most lucrative franchises for the broadcast networks, collectively taking in around $1 billion annually, a figure that has remained steady in recent years despite the increased competition. While the programs have significantly higher ratings than their cable counterparts, the availability of news on digital devices is poaching viewers who have long looked to the shows to start their day.

“Good Morning  America” got to first place as the upbeat alternative in the morning and Strahan’s presence is meant to secure that positioning. “We did not hire him to be a journalist,” Tom Cibrowski, senior vice president for ABC News programs said. “Michael can ask all kinds of questions. He’s a curious, engaging human being and a fantastic television broadcaster.”

“GMA” has also recently added a studio audience to the second hour of the program, when the show shifts away from serious news and focuses on pop culture stories, consumer information and celebrity interviews.

“We feel the changes we are making on the show are modernizing the show,” Cibrowski said. “Bringing that live studio audience in energized the 8 o’clock hour and created a new way to do morning television.”

CBS is seeing dividends from its decision five years ago to go with a newsier format in the morning — offering fewer softer features and no anchors dressed up in costume on Halloween as seen on the other shows.