CBS News ratings headed for historic lows 6 months into Bari Weiss tenure at top

CBS News’ flagship programs are reportedly on track to hit historic lows six months into the tenure of editor-in-chief Bari Weiss, who’s overseen layoffs, sinking morale and newsroom turmoil.With the first quarter winding down at the end of the week, “CBS Evening News” is poised to see its worst audience numbers for any January-through-March period this century, according to data cited by the Status newsletter.The Tony Dokoupil-helmed show has reportedly sunk to an average of 4.3 million viewers, down 7% from last year, with viewership in the coveted 25-54 demographic down 18% to 541,000.Things are no better at “CBS Mornings,” which has been averaging just 1.8 million viewers — down 13% year over year — while its viewers in the 25-54 demo plunged 28% to 268,000.Those figures would mark the show’s worst quarter ever.The competition at ABC and NBC have seen their audiences grow.ABC’s “World News Tonight with David Muir” reportedly drew an average 8.7 million viewers for the quarter, up 8% — though it dipped 5% in the 25-54 demographic to about 1.1 million viewers.NBC’s “Nightly News with Tom Llamas” notched a 6% increase in its total audience — averaging 7 million — as well as a 7% bump in the key demo, to more than 1 million viewers, according to figures obtained by Status.Muir, meanwhile, has solidified his hold on first place in the nightly news race.ABC’s flagship news show has widened its lead over Llamas and NBC to roughly 2.3 million viewers per night, marking its biggest advantage in nearly six years, according to Nielsen data.

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Muir’s broadcast averaged 8.8 million viewers for the week of March 16, compared to 6.5 million for the “Nightly News,” while also leading in the key 25–54 dem...