"DATELINE" IS THE #1 MOST-WATCHED FRIDAY NEWSMAGAZINE ACROSS THE BOARD

Delivers Biggest Key Demo Leads Over ABC in 14 Years

Beats ABC by Biggest Advantage in Total Viewers in Four Years

26th Season Premieres This Friday, Sept. 29 at 9p ET/8p CT

SEPT. 26, 2017 - Dateline NBC is the #1 most-watched Friday newsmagazine, winning the 2016-2017 season across the board. With an average of 4.6 million total viewers tuning into the show this past season, Dateline outperformed ABC by +591,000 (+15 percent).

Dateline joins NBC News' NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt, TODAY and Meet the Press with Chuck Todd, as all four network news programs are #1 in the demo, most valued by news advertisers, for the second straight season.

In the key A25-54 news demo, Dateline averaged 1.5 million viewers, leading ABC by +171,000 (+12 percent). Among A18-49 viewers, Dateline averaged 1.2 million total viewers, beating ABC by +145,000 (+14 percent).

Dateline continues to rein as the #1 newsmagazine during the third quarter of 2017, averaging 4.3 million total viewers, leading ABC by +899,000 (+26 percent). For the same period, Dateline also topped ABC by +186,000 A18-49 viewers (+22 percent) and by +163,000 A25-54 viewers (+14 percent). The series' total viewer advantage was 40 percent higher than last year for Q3.

Follow the show on Facebook and on Twitter, and tune in this Friday, Sept. 29 at 9 p.m. ET / 8 p.m. CT for the 26th season premiere of Dateline.

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ABOUT DATELINE

Dateline is the longest-running series in NBC primetime history. Beginning its 26th season this Friday, Sept. 29, Dateline is anchored by Lester Holt and features correspondents Andrea Canning, Josh Mankiewicz, Keith Morrison and Dennis Murphy. Airing Fridays at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT, Dateline reaches more than 20 million people every week through its broadcast, and millions more through its social media platforms. David Corvo is the senior executive producer, and Liz Cole is the executive producer. Follow Dateline on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.