Fox 29’s ‘Good Day Philadelphia’ wins key demos for the first time in a decade

Fox 29's Good Day Philadelphia is the number one-rated morning news show in key demographics in the Philadelphia area, beating out both local broadcasts and national shows like Good Morning America for the first time in a decade.

"Viewers want local news," Fox 29 news director Jim Driscoll told the Daily News Inquirer in a recent interview. "They want to be helped getting out the door by a local station. There is no other show in this market, or in this country, like Good Day Philadelphia."

According to October data from Nielsen Media Research, Good Day Philadelphia is the most popular morning news show from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. among Philadelphians aged 18-49 and 25-54, two age groups television stations focus on due to their appeal to advertisers. The show reportedly drew some 39,600 viewers aged 18-49 at the 6 a.m. hour, and 43,200 of those aged 25-54 in the same time period. While Good Day was the most popular show in those key demos, it was not the leader in overall viewership. That remains 6ABC's morning programming.

The numbers decline throughout the day, but Fox 29 remains on top throughout the morning. From 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. in October, Mike Jerrick, Alex Holley and company attracted 39,000 18-49 local viewers, and 43,100 25-54 viewers. From 9 a.m. to 10 a.m., the numbers fall to 19,800 18-49 viewers and 26,100 25-54 viewers.

By contrast, local morning news shows like 6ABC's Action News garnered 27,000 18-49 viewers and 42,000 in the 25-54 slot for the 6 a.m. hour, while CBS3's Eyewitness News nabbed 11,000 and 12,000 viewers from 4:30 a.m. to 7 a.m. in those demographics, respectively. NBC10 did not respond with October 2018 ratings for its NBC10 News Today program by press time, although Fox 29 provided demographic information on the rival station.

The show beat out ABC's Good Morning America, which runs from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. with 25,000 18-49 viewers and 37,000 25-54 viewers in the Philadelphia area. ABC's Live with Kelly & Ryan also fell to Fox 29 in the 10 a.m. hour with 13,000 18-49 viewers, and 20,000 25-54 viewers in the Philly area for October.

CBS and NBC did not respond by press time with ratings numbers for national shows CBS This Morning, Face the Truth, the Today show, or Megyn Kelly Today, which has now been cancelled. Nielsen does not typically have city-by-city ratings available, as per policy, a spokesperson said.

While Fox 29 came out on top in key demographics in the morning in the Philadelphia area, Good Day Philadelphia's total audience for its run stands at 86,000 by October's numbers. In total viewership that put the show behind behind 6ABC's Action News (134,000 viewers), Good Morning America (120,000), and Live with Kelly and Ryan (93,000) in overall audience size in overall viewership.

In a release, Fox 29 claimed that Good Day Philadelphia has held its number one position over national morning shows like GMA and the Today show from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. for the 18-49 age group for an entire year, and six months for the same time period for viewers aged 25-54.

The source of that success, Driscoll said, is Good Day Philadelphia's "cast of characters," which includes Jerrick, Holley, reporter Steve Keeley, weatherperson Sue Serio, and others. Viewers, Driscoll said, are familiar with each presenter, and welcome them into their homes each day to "set the tone for the morning."

"There is a consistency about waking up to people you know every morning," he said. "They're part of your routine. They're part of your family."