Paramount TV chairman George Cheeks graciously acknowledged defeat. CBS won’t end the year as the most-watched broadcast network, but there’s a good reason for that: NBC’s “legendary February,” he said.
“To be completely transparent, this year is definitely going to be good for CBS, but…CBS will never be number one in total viewers,” Cheeks told reporters on Wednesday, the day CBS announced its fall schedule. “‘February’ and NBC may be the reason. With over 120 hours of the Olympics and the NFL, including the Super Bowl, NBC’s prime-time sports are up 82% year-over-year this season.
“Congratulations to my former colleagues at NBC,” Cheeks added. Mr. Cheeks has a tenure at NBCUniversal, including as co-chairman of NBC Entertainment. (“Legendary February” was a marketing abbreviation used by NBC to promote the fact that it would broadcast the Super Bowl, the Winter Olympics, and the NBA All-Star Game all in the same month.)
NBC leads with 6.1 million total viewers, followed by CBS (4.5 million), ABC (4.4 million) and Fox (3.7 million), according to Nielsen data and all Prime programming through April 12, 2026.
Cheeks said CBS has won the total viewership title every year since the 2007-2008 television season. Variety’s annual network ranker is a little different, as it includes live +7 ratings. So at least in 2023, 2022, and 2018, we see NBC winning by a narrow margin. But CBS has always been on top, with 4.443 million viewers in the 2024-2025 television season, compared to NBC’s 4.243 million viewers. In 2023-2024, CBS led with 5.055 million viewers, followed by NBC with 4.99 million.
CBS’ prime-time tally is impressive considering that CBS does not air regular prime-time NFL programming, except in years when it broadcasts the Super Bowl and NFL Playoff games in prime time. NBC airs “Sunday Night Football” every week to increase viewership.
Cheeks and CBS Entertainment President Amy Reisenbach continue to tout the strength of The Eye’s entertainment offerings, including newcomer “The Marshalls,” which is on track to be the most-watched new series on television this year, both broadcast and streaming, according to live+28 multiplatform ratings released by the network Wednesday.
CBS also noted that “Sheriff Country,” “Boston Blue” and “CIA” followed as the top four new primetime series, while “Truckers,” “Marshalls” and “60 Minutes” were the top overall primetime broadcasts. In comedy, Georgie and Mandy’s First Wedding and Ghost are the most-watched series this season.
