ABC News experienced a significant ratings boost with Joe Biden’s interview, easily winning its timeslot, according to early figures.

Interview featuring President JoeBiden

An interview featuring President Joe Biden and conducted by George Stephanopoulos led the ratings for its Friday timeslot, capturing an audience of 8.1 million viewers according to early estimates from Nielsen.

This impressive viewership outperformed the combined totals of competitors NBC, CBS, and Fox. It marked ABC News’ highest primetime viewership since an April 2018 interview with James Comey, excluding election night and debate broadcasts.

“One on One with President Biden,”

The special, titled “One on One with President Biden,” aired at 8 p.m. ET as a unique installment of “This Week.” During the interview, President Biden attributed his lackluster debate showing to exhaustion and a cold, firmly stating he had no intention of stepping aside.

Additionally, Stephanopoulos inquired about the possibility of Biden undergoing an independent cognitive test, a suggestion to which Biden did not commit. Instead, he emphasized the daily rigors of presidential duties as his test.

Notably, the viewership for this interview significantly trailed the massive audience of 51.3 million that watched a debate event broadcasted by CNN and other networks.

The scheduling of the Stephanopoulos interview comes amid suggestions from donors and supporters advocating for President Biden to engage in more spontaneous media appearances, reinforcing his readiness for an ongoing campaign and another term.A segment of the 22-minute interview, recorded earlier that day, was featured on ABC News’ “World News Tonight.”

Comparing with other programs this news reached 2.08 million views

In comparison, other programs that night saw CBS’ “Lingo” attracting 2.08 million viewers, FOX’s “WWE Friday Night Smackdown” close behind with 2.01 million, and NBC’s “Night Court” at 1.20 million according to preliminary figures.

George Stephanopoulos’ interview with President Joe Biden easily won its timeslot on Friday, with early Nielsen fast affiliate numbers showing it drew 8.1 million viewers.

That figure is greater than NBC, CBS and Fox combined, according to Nielsen. The network said that it was the most-watched ABC News program in primetime since Stephanopoulos’ interview with James Comey in April, 2018, the exception being election night and debate coverage.

ET primetime interview , a Special Edition of this week

The 8 p.m. ET primetime interview, One on One with President Biden, was presented as a special edition of This Week. The president said that his poor debate performance was due to exhaustion and that he had a cold, while he insisted that he would not step aside.

Stephanopoulos also pressed him on whether he would take an independent cognitive test, but Biden would not commit to it and instead said that he was tested every day by the duties of the office.The audience for the interview is far smaller than the debate, which drew 51.3 million viewers on CNN and across networks the simulcast the event.

ABC news ‘World News Tonight’

The Stephanopoulos interview was arranged amid calls from donors and other supporters that the president had to do more unscripted interviews and press conferences to show that he was fit for the campaign and for another term.

An excerpt of the 22-minute interview, conducted earlier on Friday, aired on ABC News’ World News Tonight.

Other early numbers show that CBS’ Lingo drew 2.08 million viewers, Fox’s WWE Friday Night Smackdown drew 2.01 million and NBC’s Night Court posted 1.20 million.