TORONTO – Coverage of the super-cell storm that hit parts of Ontario late last week helped to set a prime-time record for news channel CP24 as the most watched night in the station’s history.
Preliminary overnight data from BBM Nielsen Media Research showed that 1.2 million total viewers watched the station’s coverage, making August 20, 2009, the most viewed day during the 7 – 11:30 p.m. hours since the station’s inception.
The CTV-owned station, which bills itself as “Toronto’s source for breaking news”, also set a new record for viewer video submissions. At one point during its coverage, CP24 said that it relied almost 100% on viewer footage harnessed by Filemobile technology.
With more than one million page views last Thursday, viewers watched first-hand perspectives of funnel clouds, lightning strikes and falling trees. Over a hundred thousand visitors and more than 1,000 viewer picture and video submissions made it the busiest day to date on CP24.com for viewer submitted material.
“The people of Toronto and the GTA (greater Toronto area) told their own story (Thursday) night, acting as assistant producers of (Thursday) night’s coverage on CP24, CP24 RADIO 1050 and CP24.com,” said vice president Bob McLaughlin, in the press release. “The video and pictures provided were the equivalent of having hundreds of camera people on the ground. More than ever CP24 has become the go to channel for breaking news in Toronto.”
