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Q1 Local+National
Week-to-Week Pacing Changes
For the first time in a few weeks, Q1 Core pace grew, picking up 0.3 points.
· January lost 0.3 points in its final days.
· February was flat week to week.
· March picked up 0.7 points.
Many groups saw March growth, with declines only in NBC, MyNet, and Independent stations; the South Central region; and the DMA 101+ group.
Forecast Updates
Last week I raised January slightly, but brought it back down this week as the month closed. It may see a slight change as the month is reconciled, but in the end, the month finished down about 4% from last year.
March looked like it would finish down about 4% too, but today I’m thrilled to report that I see upside, and I’m raising the month to nearly -3%. Some of that growth is specific to CBS stations and big March Madness buys, to be fair, but we also saw positive movement for other networks. It appears that as we approach the beginning of the Olympics and the Super Bowl, buyers are ready to look beyond those events in March and beyond. Better late than never!
We’re hearing about cancellations for Buick/Chevy/GMC due to low inventory, with the cutbacks so far impacting Q1 only. We’re thrilled that our automaker friends are selling out, but are hopeful they can align their production with demand and keep schedules on the air.
Here are this week’s forecasts:
Q1 vs. 2025:
· -4.1% for January – down 0.3 points from last week
· +4.4% for February – up 1.1 points from last week
· -3.1% for March – up 0.2 points from last week
· -1.0% for the quarter – up 0.3 points from last week
2026 vs. 2025:
· Q2: -6.8%
· Q3: -8.5%
· Q4: -11.7%
· 2026: -7.0%
Published: 12-18-2025
Published: 10-31-2025
Published: 08-26-2025