60 Minutes viewership drops 60% as football lead-in disappears

CBS’s “60 Minutes” drew 5.64 million total viewers on Sunday, a figure that represents a 60% drop from the year-earlier telecast. The decline was steeper among the demographic most valued by advertisers, with only 558,000 viewers aged 25 to 54 tuning in. This audience level marks an 81% decrease in that specific age group compared to the same episode last year.

The dip in ratings occurred during the fifth episode of the current season. Historical data from Nielsen indicates that since 2000, a sixth episode of the program has never attracted fewer than seven million total viewers or fewer than one million in the 25 to 54 demographic. The recent performance is among the smallest audiences recorded for the show in years.

The scheduling context shifted this season. Previous strong performances were driven by a preceding NFL broadcast that funneled viewers into the newsmagazine. On Sunday, no such football game aired before the show began. Instead, a late football game on Fox provided direct competition for the audience.

CBS News had not publicly released the Nielsen data as of Tuesday evening. Four people familiar with the information confirmed the numbers to Variety. The network declined to make executives available for comment. On the broadcast schedule, “60 Minutes” ranked as the second-most-watched non-sports program that night, trailing behind CBS dramas “Tracker” and “Marshals.” It typically holds the number one spot in that category.

Corporate parent Skydance and CBS television face pressure to stabilize the program, which underwent major leadership changes at the end of last season. Editor in chief Bari Weiss replaced executive producer Tanya Simon with Nick Bilton. Correspondents Scott Pelley, Cecilia Vega, and Sharyn Alfonsi were also pushed out. Anderson Cooper departed after his contract ended. New arrivals include Ross Douthat, Ariel Levy, and Sebastian Junger, who have strong journalism backgrounds but limited experience on a weekly TV format.

The Sunday broadcast featured an investigation into the Trump administration’s deportation efforts. The segment revealed how some deportees are being sent to countries where they have no ties and then forced back to the nations they fled. The show also included interviews with Colorado Governor Jared Polis and Tina Peters. Peters is an election official whose sentence for breaching her county’s election system was commuted.

The episode followed a 9% uptick in overall viewership seen in earlier parts of the season. The recent drop underscores the financial reliance of the Sunday lineup on sports lead-ins to sustain advertiser interest in the news block.