Leading Brands in US News & Magazines: Q2 2024 Analysis

The News & Magazines category in the US has seen significant activity from major players like CNN, NBC Nightly News, and USA Today. In Q2 2024, these brands demonstrated robust digital presence across web and app platforms. This article delves into their performance trends, highlighting key insights from Sensor Tower's comprehensive data.

CNN

CNN is renowned for delivering real-time news coverage through its website, cnn.com, and its app, CNN: Live & Breaking News.

• Audience Trends:

  • Web Traffic: Visits to cnn.com remained consistently high, peaking in March with over 742M visits. Unique visits saw a similar trend, surpassing 68M in May.

  • True Audience: The monthly deduplicated audience stayed stable above 65M from April to June, with a notable spike in May.

• App Engagement:

  • Monthly active users for the app hovered around 1.6M, indicating steady engagement.

• Ad Spend & Channels:

  • Total monthly ad spend varied, with a significant increase in June, reaching over $1.1M.

  • OTT platforms were a dominant channel, with consistent impressions, notably surpassing 34M in June.

NBC Nightly News

NBC Nightly News continues to engage audiences through its website, nbcnews.com, and app, NBC News: Breaking News & Live.

• Audience Trends:

  • Web Traffic: Unique visits on nbcnews.com were fairly stable, averaging around 56M monthly.

  • True Audience: The monthly deduplicated audience fluctuated, peaking at 70M in March, indicating a temporary surge in interest.

• App Engagement:

  • The app maintained a consistent monthly active user base of approximately 300K throughout the quarter.

• Ad Spend & Channels:

  • Monthly ad spend was focused primarily on OTT, with January seeing the highest spend at over $180K. Impressions were significant, particularly in OTT, peaking at 7.3M in January.

USA Today

USA Today’s digital footprint is marked by its website, usatoday.com, and app, USA TODAY: US & Breaking News.

• Audience Trends:

  • Web Traffic: Visits to usatoday.com showed fluctuations, peaking in April with over 177M visits.

  • True Audience: The monthly deduplicated audience remained robust, exceeding 39M in April.

• App Engagement:

  • The app's monthly active user base was relatively stable, with numbers around 160K.

• Ad Spend & Channels:

  • Monthly ad expenditure peaked in April at over $820K, with desktop video being a significant channel, achieving over 17M impressions.

Conclusion

The Q2 2024 analysis of leading brands in the News & Magazines category reveals strong digital engagement across multiple platforms. Sensor Tower's data, offering unparalleled insights into web, app, and advertising trends, highlights the dynamic strategies employed by CNN, NBC Nightly News, and USA Today. These insights are crucial for understanding cross-platform user behavior and optimizing digital strategies.

For more detailed insights and data, explore Sensor Tower's Web Insights, App Performance Insights, and Pathmatics.