SEATTLE — KING 5 dominated ratings in the Seattle-Tacoma market during the May sweeps period, growing its adult 25-54 local share more than any other broadcaster in the market.
“We couldn’t be prouder of the work our team produces on a daily basis” said Jim Rose, KING 5 president and general manager. “The results show what we know to be true every day of the year – that audiences turn to KING 5 journalists for the news and information that matters to them.”
KING 5 continued to drive home its refreshed brand messaging to viewers, reinforcing its mission to find truth for all Northwest communities.
You can watch the entire Stand for Truth image campaign here: https://kng5.tv/StandForTruth
KING 5 News
KING 5 Mornings at 6 a.m. was #1 with both adults 25-54 and women 25-54, while KING 5 Mornings at 4:30 and 5 a.m. grew its share of the adult 25-54 audience. KING 5 Mornings on KONG from 7-9 a.m. grew its share of adults 25-54, too, as viewers looked to find continuing local coverage in the morning.
In the early evening from 4-7:30 p.m., KING 5 News reached more adult 25-54 news viewers than any other broadcaster. KING 5 grew its audience share across all evening newscasts from 4-7:30 p.m. with #1 finishes at 5, 6:30 and 7 p.m.
In late news, KING 5 News at 11 p.m. grew its adult 25-54 broadcast news share by +24% while KING 5 News on KONG saw its 9 p.m. newscast grow its year-over-year share (+8%) in adults 25-54.
“May saw the KING 5 newsroom providing some of its most comprehensive coverage of the year so far,” said Russ Walker, KING 5 assistant news director. “From the tragic crane collapse in downtown Seattle to Boeing’s struggles to get the 737-MAX back in the air, KING 5 journalists delivered insightful coverage of the most important stories in the Northwest.”
Throughout May, KING 5 provided viewers with unique, in-depth exclusive stories. Environmental reporter Alison Morrow dove deep into the complex challenge of saving the Puget Sound’s orcas, delivering 15 stories in three weeks and hosting three one-hour panel discussions broadcast on YouTube and Facebook Live.
KING 5 investigator Chris Ingalls got quick results with his "Money Down the Drain" series, which explored the poor oversight of small governments in the state. His reporting prompted the King County Council to dismiss the commissioners of a rural drainage district, finding that one of the commissioners channeled hundreds of thousands of dollars to his own accounts.
Chief investigative reporter Susannah Frame highlighted the problem of disabled adults being stranded at hospitals. She also brought to light the state’s failure to enforce a law passed 4 years ago to ensure foster care social workers are held to account when children they supervise are gravely injured.
KING 5 anchor Greg Copeland took viewers to the Yakima Training Center to show how the U.S. Army and Air Force work together to deploy high-tech missile batteries to remote locations. Meanwhile, reporter Ted Land traveled to Phoenix to document how Alaska Airlines trains ground crews to handle the remains of veterans and service members that need to be transported for burial – an emotional piece that included the departure of a Vietnam veteran’s remains from Seattle bound for Arlington National Cemetery.
To close out the month, KING 5 anchor Mark Wright sat down for an exclusive one-on-one interview with Bill Gates, who talked about his commitment to family, Melinda Gates's new book "The Moment of Lift" and the foundation’s push to spend tens of billions of dollars in the years ahead.
Local Programming
KING 5’s entertainment shows also saw significant broadcast share growth. Evening grew its share of adult 25-54 viewers with shows that included the Best Northwest Escapes reveal week, an Edible Education series and red carpet coverage from the Billboard Music Awards in Las Vegas. New Day Northwest also saw dramatic share growth among adults 25-54, interviewing guests such as Dr. Maya Soetoro-Ng (President Obama’s half-sister), Valerie Jarrett (former senior adviser to President Obama) and Tipper Gore.
NBC
NBC prime on KING 5 was #1 in May, delivering strong performances by new shows The Village and New Amsterdam (both #1 in key demos in their respective time periods), along with The Voice, World of Dance, Law & Order: SVU and Saturday Night Live. Also, The Today Show beat its network morning news show competition combined, and NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt grew its share of the audience and finished #1 in key demos relative to the network news competition. Saturday Night Live finished another successful season with both its prime time and late-night airings, remaining the top show in late night. Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers both finished in the top spot for their respective late-night time slots, as well. In the syndicated arena, the Ellen DeGeneres show was the top program in daytime among all entertainment shows in all key demos.
KING 5 Digital
KING 5's digital and social audiences continue to grow. Nearly 2.5 million visitors accessed king5.com or used the KING 5 mobile app during the May sweeps period with 17.7 million page views.
Alison Morrow’s series "Saving the Orcas" drew more than 30,000 readers. We had more than 20,000 views on Facebook Live for our panel discussions with experts on the orcas' plight.
KING 5's social media community is the largest in the Seattle market among news media companies. KING 5 has 985,000 Facebook fans and 653,000 followers on Twitter. In addition, KING 5 has the most Instagram and YouTube followers of any Seattle media company.
ABOUT KING 5
KING 5 Media Group, The Home Team, is a multi-platform media company based in Seattle, WA. It includes NBC affiliate KING 5, independent station KONG-TV and numerous digital platforms, including king5.com. KING 5 was the first television station in the Pacific Northwest, founded in 1948 by Dorothy Bullitt, now owned by TEGNA Inc. Today KING 5 is the dominant media company in the region, delivering the largest local news audience and the most local programming across all screens. For more information, go to www.king5.com.
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