TV Ratings: ABC Scores Fourth of July Upset With Daylong Programming Block

Disney Celebrates America: Nashville's Star-Spangled Bash - Ryan Seacrest hosts live primetime July 4 celebration, featuring powerhouse music performances, spectacular fireworks and more from Nashville.

Host Ryan Seacrest during the 'Nashviille's Star-Spangled Bash' special on ABC July 4. Tanner Yeager/Disney/Getty Images Logo text

On an unusually crowded Fourth of July TV slate, ABC delivered a ratings upset.

The network’s primetime special Nashville’s Star-Spangled Bash — the finale of a 24-hour “Disney Celebrates America” programming block — outdrew the annual Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks on NBC, which is usually the top program on Independence Day. ABC averaged 5.44 million viewers for the three-hour Star-Spangled Bash, beating the 4.94 million on-air viewers for NBC’s two-hour special.

ABC’s win marks the first time since 2010 that a network other than NBC has led primetime on the Fourth of July

World Cup Sets Another Ratings Record in U.S. Loss to Belgium

MrBeast Will Be a Shark on the New Season of ABC's 'Shark Tank'

Including replays, a Spanish-language telecast on Telemundo and streaming on Peacock, NBC claimed 11.2 million viewers for the Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks, based on early Nielsen numbers. The early tally for NBC’s first airing of the special came in at 5.1 million viewers, adjusting down to 4.94 million in the final ratings. NBC still saw a sizable bump in viewers compared to last year, improving by 37 percent

ABC’s special also topped Fourth of July broadcasts on Fox News (3.47 million viewers in primetime), CBS (1.99 million) and CNN (1.27 million).

The “Disney Celebrates America” stunt, which began with two primetime specials on July 3, reached 49.6 million viewers, ABC says — “reached” meaning that many people watched at least a minute or two of the programming. The network also averaged 5 million viewers for the Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest (which it simulcast with ESPN2) and 4.5 million for an afternoon special called 7 Wonders of America.

The semiquincentennial specials made for a much bigger TV night than the typical summer Saturday. Fox also had its biggest Saturday primetime baseball audience of the season with 3.34 million viewers. The big four networks, Fox News and CNN combined to average almost 20 million viewers in primetime.