A+E’s Unscripted Hot American Summer

A+E’s slate of evergreen unscripted content has been paying major dividends this summer. Tubular Audience Ratings data shows A+E was the No. 4 U.S. media property by domestic minutes watched (across YouTube and Facebook) in July, jumping 29% month-over-month.

• Most-viewed videos came from unscripted shows like How The Earth Was Made and Little Women: Atlanta from History Channel and Lifetime, respectively.
• By comparison, other media companies (largely more reliant on scripted shows and/or live sports) saw more modest increases or slight dips for the month of July.
• This dynamic is one to follow for major media properties heading into the fall, as there's less scripted programming given the writers' and actors' strikes, and more unscripted content across TV networks (though streaming services like Apple TV+ seem to have larger banks of content in waiting).