David Muir on overcoming a ‘polarizing time’ to be America’s #1 nightly newscast | Exclusive

It's no secret that the TV news landscape is in a state of turmoil. NBC's evening anchors recently had a passing of the torch, CBS News is getting overhauled completely and network TV audiences are turning away to plenty of other distractions. So why has David Muir on ABC survived so long?

"After all this time, we have built this profound connection with our audience," the "World News Tonight" anchor tells USA TODAY in an exclusive interview. "I hear it when I'm walking down the street. People will say, 'Hey, I feel like I know you.' And I always say, 'You do.'"

That genuine connection seems to be working. ABC's “World News Tonight with David Muir” (airing daily, 6:30 p.m. ET) is now television’s most-watched evening newscast for 10 consecutive years, drawing 8.3 million total viewers during the 2025-2026 season that ended Sept. 13, which is up 6% from the previous season, according to a press release from ABC, citing Nielsen Media Research. In that period, the show spent 33 of 52 weeks as the No. 1 program in total viewers on all of broadcast and cable (with and without sports). And for the seventh straight year, it leads all…

Original source: https://www.usatoday.com/travel/