20/20 (American TV program)

{{short description|American television newsmagazine}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2021}}
{{Infobox television
| image                = New logo for 2020 following ABC's 2021 rebranding.png
| genre                = [[News magazine]]
| creator              = [[Roone Arledge]]
| presenter            = {{Plainlist|
*  [[David Muir]]
* [[Deborah Roberts]]
* {{small|(for past anchors, [[#Former on-air staff|see section]])}}
}}
| theme_music_composer = {{Plainlist|
*  [[Score Productions]] (1979–2001)
* VideoHelper (2001–2004)
* [[Transcenders]] (2004–2006)
* DreamArtists Studios (2009–present)
}}
| opentheme            = 
| endtheme             = 
| composer             = 
| country              = United States
| language             = English
| num_seasons          = 46<!-- increment when new season begins -->
| num_episodes         = 500+
| list_episodes        = 
| executive_producer   = David Sloan (2005–present)
| producer             = 
| camera               = [[Multi-camera]]
| runtime              = {{Plainlist|
*  60 minutes (1979–2019) 
*  120 minutes (2019–present)
}}
| company              = [[ABC News|ABC News Productions]]
| network              = [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]
| first_aired          = {{Start date|1978|6|6}}
| last_aired           = present
| related              = 
}}

'''''20/20''''' (stylized as '''''20<sup>20</sup>''''') is an American television [[News magazine|newsmagazine]] that has been broadcast on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] since June 6, 1978. Created by [[ABC News]] executive [[Roone Arledge]],<ref>{{cite web|title=Roone Arledge Auditorium And Cinema Dedicated April 25|url=http://www.columbia.edu/cu/pr/00/04/arledge.html|author=Suzanne Trimel|publisher=[[Columbia University]]|date=April 26, 2000}}</ref> the program was designed similarly to [[CBS]]'s ''[[60 Minutes]]'' in that it features in-depth story packages, although it focuses more on [[human interest stories]] than international and political subjects. The program's name derives from the "20/20" measurement of [[visual acuity]].

The two-hour-long program has been a staple on Friday evenings (currently airing at 9:00&nbsp;p.m. [[Eastern Time Zone]]) for much of the time since it moved to that timeslot from Thursdays in September 1987, though special editions of the program occasionally air on other nights. For most of its history, it was led into by ABC's two-hour ''[[TGIF (TV programming block)|TGIF]]'' block of sitcoms.

Since 2019, it has shifted to a two-hour format highlighting [[true crime]] stories and celebrity scandals rather than the traditional [[investigative journalism]] associated with newsmagazines, following the same programming direction as [[CBS]]'s ''[[48 Hours (TV program)|48 Hours]]'' and same-night competitor ''[[Dateline NBC]]''. Special edition episodes, however, cover a wide range of topics.

==History==
The anchors on the premiere telecast of ''20/20'' were ''[[Esquire (magazine)|Esquire]]'' magazine editor [[Harold Hayes]], who also served as the program's senior producer, and ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' art critic [[Robert Hughes (critic)|Robert Hughes]]. The program's debut received largely harsh reviews; ''[[The New York Times]]'' described it as "dizzyingly absurd" and ''[[The Washington Post]]'' denounced it as "the trashiest stab at candycane journalism yet." In his autobiography ''Roone: A Memoir'', Roone Arledge recalled that probably the most embarrassing part of that initial program was the [[Clay animation|Claymation]] segments featuring caricatures representing then-President [[Jimmy Carter]] (singing "[[Georgia on My Mind]]") and [[Walter Cronkite]] (closing the program intoning, "That's the way it was"). As a result of the scathing reviews, serious and drastic changes were immediately made: Hayes and Hughes were fired (as was original executive producer Bob Shanks), and a then semi-retired [[Hugh Downs]] was recruited to take on the role of sole host on the following week's program.

Also featured in the premiere telecast of ''20/20'', the opening sequence consisted of a pair of eyeglasses, whose lenses showed colored bars, which are often seen in the [[SMPTE color bars]] (used when television stations were off the air between sign-off and sign-on). The eyeglasses were keyed over a yellow background, and rotated to its rear position to reveal the ''20/20'' studio.

With Downs hosting, ''20/20'' changed into a more standard yet unique newsmagazine and received kinder reviews from critics. The program was originally launched as a summer replacement series; it was then presented on a once-a-month basis during the 1978–79 television season, before being given a regular weekly timeslot on Thursdays at 10:00&nbsp;p.m. Eastern Time beginning May 31, 1979. Emmy Award-winning producer, Bernard I. Cohen began his career with ABC evening news in 1964. From 1979 to 1992, he was a lead Producer at 20/20 and helped solidify the program's top Nielsen Ratings. Ratings were generally very good during the summer months during its eight years on Thursday nights despite competition from ''[[Knots Landing]]'' on CBS and ''[[Hill Street Blues]]'' on [[NBC]]. It was around this time that the program started using the Brock Brower-written signoff line "We're in touch, so you be in touch" to end each program,<ref>{{cite news|title=A Horrifying Satire of Hollywood Returns|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/brian-joseph-davis/the-late-great-creature_b_1095755.html|work=[[The Huffington Post]]|date=November 18, 2011}}</ref> which continues to be used to now (the program also used the line "Around the world and into your home, the stories that touch your life" as the introduction during the program's opening titles for much of the 1990s).

[[Barbara Walters]] joined the program in 1979 in a role something less than a co-anchor and soon became a regular special contributor in the fall of 1981. In 1984, she was named as co-anchor and thus Hugh Downs's equal, reuniting a duo which had already anchored together on NBC's ''[[Today (American TV program)|Today]]'' from 1964 to 1971. The team would remain together on-air for the next 15 years.

In the fall of 1987, ''20/20'' was moved to Fridays at 10:00&nbsp;p.m. Eastern; while in that timeslot, it ranked at 21st place in the annual [[Nielsen ratings]] by the 1991–92 season. It aired in that same Friday time slot until the fall of 2001, when ABC briefly replaced the program with the scripted family drama series ''[[Once and Again]]'', only for ''20/20'' to return to the lineup again four months later; it has basically retained the timeslot ever since. While the program briefly moved to the 8:00&nbsp;p.m. timeslot on October 12, 2007, it reverted to its usual time two weeks later.

In the late 1990s, ABC began to expand the show to additional nights.  In September 1997, a second weekly edition of ''20/20'' with Downs and Walters made its debut on Thursday evenings, later moving to Mondays. From September 1998 to September 2000, [[ABC News]] chose to consolidate its newsmagazine programs by combining ''20/20'' and ''[[Primetime (American TV program)|Primetime Live]]'' into a singular brand under the ''20/20'' name and format to compete with ''[[Dateline NBC]]'' (which itself ran for four nights a week at the time), and having former Primetime Live anchors [[Sam Donaldson]] and [[Diane Sawyer]] host ''20/20'' on Wednesday in the former show's old timeslot.  Additional nights were also added during this time with various anchors for each broadcast.  At its peak, ''20/20'' ran on Mondays, Wednesdays and Sundays, in addition to its longtime Friday timeslot; these additional nights of ''20/20'' were joined by the younger-skewing ''20/20 Downtown'' on Thursday nights in October 1999. In September 2000, ABC reinstated ''Primetime'' under the title ''Primetime Thursday'', and spun off ''20/20 Downtown'' as a separate newsmagazine simply titled ''Downtown'' on Monday evenings. By early 2002, ''20/20'' once again was airing only in its original Friday timeslot.

On March 3, 1999, [[Monica Lewinsky]], the former [[White House]] intern who was infamously revealed to have been involved in an affair with then-President [[Bill Clinton]] a few years earlier, was interviewed by Barbara Walters on the program; that particular edition of ''20/20'' was watched by an estimated 70 million viewers, which ABC stated was a record audience for a news program.<ref name="cnn030899">{{cite news|title=Monica's makeover|url=http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/time/1999/03/08/makeover.html|author=John Cloud|publisher=[[CNN]]| date=March 8, 1999}}</ref>

After Downs' retirement in 1999, Walters became the solo anchor of ''20/20''. This lasted until [[John Miller (police official)|John Miller]] was hired as a permanent co-host of the program in 2002; Miller never got very comfortable in the anchor chair, and a year later, he jumped at the chance to rejoin law enforcement. For a few months in early 2003, Barbara Walters temporarily anchored solo again. However, in May of that year, [[John Stossel]] – an investigative correspondent for the program who was behind the controversial, though popular, "Give Me a Break" segments – was named as Walters' new co-anchor. As one of the first veteran anchors, Barbara Walters chose to go into semi-retirement as a broadcast journalist in 2004. However, she remained with ''20/20'' as a frequent contributor to the program. ABC News correspondent [[Elizabeth Vargas]] was promoted to the co-anchor position.

On August 25, 2008, ''20/20'' (alongside ''[[ABC World News Tonight|ABC World News]]'' and ''[[Nightline]]'') began broadcasting in [[High-definition television|high definition]], with broadcasts presented in a [[pillarbox]] format for viewers with [[standard-definition television]] sets watching either through [[Cable television|cable]] or [[satellite television]]. The program also introduced a new set and upconverted its existing graphics package to HD.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Burns |first=Matt |date=2008-08-25 |title=ABC World News, Nightline, 20/20, & Primetime going high-def |url=https://techcrunch.com/2008/08/25/abc-world-news-nightline-2020-primetime-going-high-def/ |access-date=2024-03-08 |website=TechCrunch |language=en-US}}</ref>

In September 2009, before the start of its 31st season, John Stossel announced he would leave the program after 28 years to pursue a new weekly show on [[Fox Business]].<ref>{{cite news|title=John Stossel Leaving ABC for Fox Business|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/11/business/media/11fox.html|author=Brian Stelter|work=The New York Times|date=September 11, 2009}}</ref> Barbara Walters and [[Diane Sawyer]] also contributed reports. On December 10, 2009, ABC News announced that ''[[Good Morning America]]'' news anchor [[Chris Cuomo]] was promoted to co-host ''20/20'' alongside Elizabeth Vargas. On January 29, 2013, it was announced that Chris Cuomo would leave ABC News and ''20/20'' for [[CNN]] to co-host the cable network's new morning news program, ''[[New Day (TV program)|New Day]]''; on the same day, ABC announced [[David Muir]] would join Elizabeth Vargas as the new co-anchor of the program, in addition to continuing as weekend anchor of ''[[ABC World News Tonight]]'' (a role he retains after being appointed to main anchor of the since-renamed ''ABC World News Tonight'' in September 2014).

The program expanded once again on March 2, 2013, with the debut of ''20/20 Saturday'', which mainly features rebroadcasts of archived stories from previous editions of ''20/20'' (mainly those dating back as early as 2008) in the same single topic format as the flagship Friday broadcasts. ''20/20 Saturday'' airs outside of [[ESPN College Football on ABC|college football season]], at either 9:00&nbsp;p.m. as a two-hour broadcast formatted as separate hour-long episodes centered on two different topics or at 10:00&nbsp;p.m. Eastern Time as an hour-long broadcast, depending on the programs that precede it that given week. Barbara Walters originally served as host of the program until her retirement from regular television broadcasting in May 2014, after which the hosting duties were turned over the anchors of the Friday editions.

On December 22, 2017, Elizabeth Vargas announced that she would be leaving ''20/20'' and ABC News at the end of May. On April 23, 2018, [[Good Morning America]] news anchor [[Amy Robach]] was announced to take over as co-anchor alongside Muir in May; she subsequently departed from ABC News (and ''20/20'' by extension) on January 27, 2023, after the ''[[Daily Mail]]'' reported the previous November on an affair between her and [[T.J. Holmes]], who co-anchored ''[[GMA3: What You Need to Know]]'' with her.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Grynbaum |first1=Michael M. |last2=Koblin |first2=John |title=ABC Co-Anchors to Leave Network After Tabloid Scandal |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/27/business/media/abc-news-holmes-robach.html |access-date=January 27, 2023 |work=The New York Times |date=January 27, 2023}}</ref> Meanwhile, [[Deborah Roberts]] was named a contributing anchor to ''20/20'' on October 4, 2022, via a note from ABC News President [[Kimberly Godwin]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Johnson |first1=Ted |title=Deborah Roberts Adds '20/20′ Contributing Anchor To ABC News Duties |url=https://deadline.com/2022/10/deborah-roberts-20-20-abc-news-1235134980/ |access-date=January 27, 2023 |work=[[Deadline Hollywood]] |date=October 4, 2022}}</ref>

The December 30, 2022 edition of the program was interrupted in the Eastern and Central time zones by news of Barbara Walters's death around 9:30&nbsp;p.m. ET, and anchor Phil Liphof anchored coverage for 90 minutes with ABC News's official obituary and comment from other ABC News staff about her life and impact.

===''20/20 Downtown''===
Unlike most other newsmagazines, ''20/20 Downtown'' was never carried by any big name anchor. An ensemble team of anchors fronted the broadcast, which was aimed at attracting younger viewers, but was hampered by many of the network's larger market [[network affiliate]] stations bumping the program to late night or weekend timeslots to accommodate local pre-game shows or coach's shows/highlight recap programming dealing with [[National Football League|NFL]] or [[college football]] teams preceding ABC's ''[[Monday Night Football]]''. The anchor/reporting duties were filled by the team of Elizabeth Vargas, [[Cynthia McFadden]], Chris Cuomo, [[Jay Schadler]] and [[John Quiñones]]. The program was renamed ''Downtown'' but was canceled in 2002. In 2003, the program returned for one season as ''Primetime Monday'', with the same anchors and format.

===Special episodes===
Even though ''20/20'' still occasionally uses a multiple topic format, the program has seen a gradual shift towards single topic editions since the late 2000s (similar to what has occurred with ''Dateline NBC'' since around the same timeframe, although continuing to include a wider range of topics), either in the form of various story packages that relate to the topic or a focus on a single story.

===''Bad Romance: A Special Edition of 20/20''===
{{Main|Bad Romance: A Special Edition of 20/20}}

==Theme music==
The distinctive theme music to ''20/20'' was written by Robert Arnold Israel Sr. (who among other credits, also co-wrote theme music for now-cancelled fellow ABC series ''[[All My Children]]'' and ''[[One Life to Live]]'') and based upon the longtime Lillian Scheinert-written theme used for ''ABC World News Tonight''. The original theme was revamped around 1993, and was subsequently replaced in 1999, along with the ''20/20'' logo and the anchor desk on the program's set. Finally the orchestral ''20/20'' theme was updated in 2001, along with a few modifications in 2003 and 2005. In 2009, the theme was once again revamped, and once more in 2010, along with new graphics to reflect the news magazine's new darker tone; this new theme was written by DreamArtists Studios. In 2012 the theme was revamped, again arranged by DreamArtists Studios.

==On-air staff==
===Current on-air staff===
Note: ''20/20'' has specials with other "on-air staff".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/transcript-abc-news-george-stephanopoulos-exclusive-interview-president/story?id=63749144 |title=Transcript: ABC News' George Stephanopoulos' exclusive interview with President Trump |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=June 16, 2019 |website=ABC News |access-date=July 31, 2019}}</ref>

====Anchors====
* [[David Muir]] (2013–present)
* [[Deborah Roberts]] (2022–present)

====Correspondents====
* [[Juju Chang]]
* [[John Quiñones]]
* [[Diane Sawyer]]

===Former on-air staff===

====Anchors====
* [[Harold Hayes]] (1978; deceased)
* [[Robert Hughes (critic)|Robert Hughes]] (1978; deceased)
* [[Hugh Downs]] (1978–1999; deceased)
* [[Barbara Walters]] (1979–2004, 2013–2014; deceased)
* [[Diane Sawyer]] (1998–2000)
* [[Charles Gibson]] (1998–2000; retired)
* [[Sam Donaldson]] (1998–2000; retired)
* [[Connie Chung]] (1998–2000)
* [[John Miller (police official)|John Miller]] (2002–2003)
* [[John Stossel]] (2003–2009)
* [[Elizabeth Vargas]] (2004–2018)
* [[Chris Cuomo]] (2009–2013)
* [[Amy Robach]] (2018–2023)

====Correspondents====

* [[Martin Bashir]]
* [[Sylvia Chase]] (1978–1988; deceased)
* [[Catherine Crier]]
* [[Katie Couric]]
* [[Arnold Díaz|Arnold Diaz]] (now at [[WPIX]] in New York City)
* Steve Fox
* [[Thomas Hoving]] (1978–1984; deceased)
* [[Tom Jarriel]] (1979–2002; retired)
* [[Timothy Johnson (medical journalist)|Dr. Tim Johnson]]
* [[Peter Lance]]
* [[John Laurence]]
* [[Dave Marash]]
* [[Cynthia McFadden]] (now at [[NBC News]])
* [[Lisa McRee]]
* [[Perri Peltz]] (1998–2000)
* [[Stone Phillips]] (1986–1992)
* [[Bill Ritter (journalist)|Bill Ritter]]
* [[Geraldo Rivera]]
* [[Brian Ross (journalist)|Brian Ross]]
* [[Carl Sagan]]
* [[Lynn Sherr]] (1986–2008)
* [[Sander Vanocur]] (1978–1991; deceased)
* [[Chris Wallace]] (now at [[CNN]])

==Ratings==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! style="text-align:center;"|'''Season'''
! style="text-align:center;"|'''[[Nielsen Holdings|Nielsen]]<br />ranking'''
! style="text-align:center;"|'''Average viewership'''
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1977–78 || rowspan=7|  || rowspan=2|N/A (summer)
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1978–79
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1979–80 || rowspan=5|
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1980–81
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1981–82
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1982–83
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1983–84
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1984–85 || 55 || 13.7&nbsp;million{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1985–86 || 40 || 15.5&nbsp;million{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1986–87 || 43 || 14.2&nbsp;million{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1987–88 || 54 || 12.6&nbsp;million{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1988–89 || 40 || 14.1&nbsp;million{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1989–90 || 44 || 13.5&nbsp;million{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1990–91 || 33 || 13.5&nbsp;million{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1991–92 || 21 || 14.4&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite book |last1=Brooks |first1=Tim |last2=Marsh |first2=Earle |date=2007 |title=The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present |publisher=Ballantine Books |page=1693 |edition=Ninth |isbn=978-0-345-49773-4 }}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1992–93 || 12 || 15.1&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite book |last1=Brooks |first1=Tim |last2=Marsh |first2=Earle |date=2007 |title=The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present |publisher=Ballantine Books |page=1693 |edition=Ninth |isbn=978-0-345-49773-4 }}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1993–94 || 15 || 14.3&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite book |last1=Brooks |first1=Tim |last2=Marsh |first2=Earle |date=2007 |title=The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present |publisher=Ballantine Books |page=1693 |edition=Ninth |isbn=978-0-345-49773-4 }}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1994–95 || 17 || 14.0&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite book |last1=Brooks |first1=Tim |last2=Marsh |first2=Earle |date=2007 |title=The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present |publisher=Ballantine Books |page=1694 |edition=Ninth |isbn=978-0-345-49773-4 }}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1995–96 || 11 || 13.6&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite book |last1=Brooks |first1=Tim |last2=Marsh |first2=Earle |date=2007 |title=The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present |publisher=Ballantine Books |page=1694 |edition=Ninth |isbn=978-0-345-49773-4 }}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1996–97 || 12 || 12.8&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite book |last1=Brooks |first1=Tim |last2=Marsh |first2=Earle |date=2007 |title=The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present |publisher=Ballantine Books |page=1694 |edition=Ninth |isbn=978-0-345-49773-4 }}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1997–98 || 19 || 15.0&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,283382,00.html |title=The Final Countdown |publisher=EW.com |date=May 29, 1998 |access-date=September 20, 2012}}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1998–99 || 22 || 13.7&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite book |last1=Brooks |first1=Tim |last2=Marsh |first2=Earle |date=2007 |title=The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present |publisher=Ballantine Books |page=1695 |edition=Ninth |isbn=978-0-345-49773-4 }}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1999–2000 || 33 || 12.2&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite web|title=Charts on Box Office Films, Film Trailers, Film Release, Independent Films, Music, TV Ratings, Theater, Video Games|url=https://www.variety.com/index.asp?layout=chart_pass&charttype=chart_topshows99&dept=TV|publisher=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|access-date=September 20, 2012}}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2000–01 || 44 || 11.5&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite web|title=The Bitter End|url=https://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,256435,00.html|website=EW.com|publisher=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|date=June 1, 2001|access-date=September 20, 2012}}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2001–02 || 60 || 9.7&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite web|title=How did your favorite show rate?|url=https://www.usatoday.com/life/television/2002/2002-05-28-year-end-chart.htm|publisher=[[USA Today]]|date=May 28, 2002|access-date=September 20, 2012}}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2002–03 || 76 || 8.8&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite web|title=Rank And File|url=https://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,455439,00.html|website=EW.com|publisher=Entertainment Weekly|date=June 6, 2003|access-date=September 20, 2012}}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2003–04 || 58 || 9.6&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite web|title=ABC Medianet |url=http://www.abcmedianet.com/Web/progcal/dispDNR.aspx?id=060204_11 |publisher=ABC Medianet |date=June 2, 2004 |access-date=April 10, 2021 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930155240/http://www.abcmedianet.com/Web/progcal/dispDNR.aspx?id=060204_11 |archive-date=September 30, 2007}}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2004–05 || 66 || 8.5&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite web|title=ABC Medianet |url=http://www.abcmedianet.com/pressrel/dispDNR.html?id=060105_05 |publisher=ABC Medianet |date=June 1, 2005 |access-date=April 10, 2021 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070310210208/http://www.abcmedianet.com/pressrel/dispDNR.html?id=060105_05 |archive-date=March 10, 2007}}</ref>
|-  style="text-align:center; text-align:center;"
| 2005–06 || 75 || 8.0&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite web|title=ABC Medianet |url=http://www.abcmedianet.com/pressrel/dispDNR.html?id=053106_05 |publisher=ABC Medianet |date=May 31, 2006 |access-date=April 10, 2021 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070310210300/http://www.abcmedianet.com/pressrel/dispDNR.html?id=053106_05 |archive-date=March 10, 2007}}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2006–07 || 106 || 7.5&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite web|title=ABC Medianet |url=http://abcmedianet.com/web/dnr/dispDNR.aspx?id=060507_05 |publisher=ABC Medianet |date=June 5, 2007 |access-date=September 20, 2012 |url-status=dead  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090107155346/http://abcmedianet.com/web/dnr/dispDNR.aspx?id=060507_05 |archive-date=January 7, 2009 }}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2007–08 || 114 || 6.5&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite web|title=ABC Medianet |url=http://abcmedianet.com/web/dnr/dispDNR.aspx?id=052808_06 |publisher=ABC Medianet |date=May 28, 2008 |access-date=September 20, 2012 |url-status=dead  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140717231324/http://www.abcmedianet.com/web/dnr/dispDNR.aspx?id=052808_06 |archive-date=July 17, 2014 }}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2008–09 || 76 || 7.0&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite web|title=ABC Medianet |url=http://abcmedianet.com/web/dnr/dispDNR.aspx?id=051909_05 |publisher=ABC Medianet |date=May 19, 2009 |access-date=September 20, 2012 |url-status=dead  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090623063544/http://abcmedianet.com/web/dnr/dispDNR.aspx?id=051909_05 |archive-date=June 23, 2009 }}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2009–10 || 77 || 6.3&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite web|title=Final 2009–10 Broadcast Primetime Show Average Viewership |url=http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2010/06/16/final-2009-10-broadcast-primetime-show-average-viewership/54336/ |work=TV by the Numbers |publisher=Zap2It |date=June 16, 2010 |access-date=September 20, 2012 |url-status=dead  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140821034701/http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2010/06/16/final-2009-10-broadcast-primetime-show-average-viewership/54336/ |archive-date=August 21, 2014 }}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2010–11 || 100 || 5.8&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite web|title=2010–11 Season Broadcast Primetime Show Viewership Averages |url=http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2011/06/01/2010-11-season-broadcast-primetime-show-viewership-averages/94407/ |work=TV by the Numbers |publisher=Zap2It |date=June 1, 2011 |access-date=September 20, 2012 |url-status=dead  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140209110657/http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2011/06/01/2010-11-season-broadcast-primetime-show-viewership-averages/94407/ |archive-date=February 9, 2014 }}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2011–12 || 107 || 5.6&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite web|title=Complete List Of 2011–12 Season TV Show Viewership: 'Sunday Night Football' Tops, Followed By 'American Idol,' 'NCIS' & 'Dancing With The Stars'|url=http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2012/05/24/complete-list-of-2011-12-season-tv-show-viewership-sunday-night-football-tops-followed-by-american-idol-ncis-dancing-with-the-stars/135785/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120527223446/http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2012/05/24/complete-list-of-2011-12-season-tv-show-viewership-sunday-night-football-tops-followed-by-american-idol-ncis-dancing-with-the-stars/135785/|url-status=dead|archive-date=May 27, 2012|work=TV by the Numbers|publisher=Zap2It|date=May 24, 2012|access-date=September 20, 2012}}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2012–13 || 83 || 5.7&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite web|title=Complete List Of 2012–13 Season TV Show Viewership: 'Sunday Night Football' Tops, Followed By 'NCIS,' 'The Big Bang Theory' & 'NCIS: Los Angeles'|url=http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2013/05/29/complete-list-of-2012-13-season-tv-show-viewership-sunday-night-football-tops-followed-by-ncis-the-big-bang-theory-ncis-los-angeles/184781/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130607112820/http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2013/05/29/complete-list-of-2012-13-season-tv-show-viewership-sunday-night-football-tops-followed-by-ncis-the-big-bang-theory-ncis-los-angeles/184781/|url-status=dead|archive-date=June 7, 2013|work=TV by the Numbers|publisher=Zap2It|date=May 29, 2013|access-date=May 24, 2014}}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2013–14 || || 
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2014–15 || || 
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2015–16 || || 
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2016–17 || || 
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2017–18 || || 
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2018–19 || 97 || 4.8&nbsp;million<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/live-7-ratings-broadcast-tv-series-2018-19-1217293|title=2018–19 TV Season: Live-Plus-7 Ratings for Every Broadcast Series|date=June 10, 2019|website=The Hollywood Reporter}}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2019–20 || 90 || 4.4&nbsp;million<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/tv-ratings-7-day-season-averages-2019-20-broadcast-series-1297228|title=TV Ratings: 7-Day Season Averages for Every 2019–20 Broadcast Series|date=June 4, 2020|website=The Hollywood Reporter}}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2020-21 || 72 || 4.11&nbsp;million<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/2020-21-tv-ratings-every-network-show-ranked-1234964854/|title=2020-21 TV Ratings: Complete 7-Day Ratings for Broadcast Network Series|date=June 8, 2021|website=The Hollywood Reporter}}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2021-22 || 58 || 4.23&nbsp;million<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/2021-22-tv-ratings-every-network-series-ranked-1235161738/|title=2021-22 TV Ratings: Final Seven-Day Numbers for Every Network Series|date=June 8, 2022|website=The Hollywood Reporter}}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 2022-23 || 63 || 3.87&nbsp;million<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/most-popular-tv-shows-highest-rated-2022-2023-season-yellowstone-football-1235623612/|title=100 Most-Watched TV Series of 2022-23: This Season's Winners and Losers|date=May 29, 2023|website=Variety}}</ref>
|}

==Syndication==
[[True crime]]-focused episodes of the series air in first-run syndication on [[Oprah Winfrey Network]] and [[Investigation Discovery]] as ''20/20 on OWN/ID''.

==International broadcasts==
* ABC News programs, including ''20/20'', are shown daily on the 24-hour news network [[OSN News]] in [[MENA]] Region.
* In Singapore, the program airs on [[CNA (news channel)|CNA]].
* In Canada, it airs on [[CHCH-DT]] in [[Hamilton, Ontario|Hamilton]], [[CIIT-DT]] in Winnipeg and [[CHNU-DT]] in Vancouver, usually in [[simultaneous substitution]] with the ABC telecast.
* In Australia, it was previously regularly aired overnight on the [[Nine Network]] and [[Sky News Live]] (occasional notable episodes are still aired).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tvtonight.com.au/2015/04/bruce-jenner-the-interview-live-on-sky-news-business.html|title=Bruce Jenner: The Interview live on SKY News Business|date=April 24, 2015|access-date=July 4, 2017|work=TV Tonight|first=David|last=Knox}}</ref>
* In Hong Kong, the program airs at 9&nbsp;p.m. every Sunday on [[ViuTVsix]].

==Local versions==
* In the [[Republic of Ireland]], an Irish version of ''20/20'' launched on [[TV3 (Ireland)|TV3]] in 1998. The show, which was canceled in 2002, used a mix of reports produced domestically and for the American edition.
* In New Zealand, [[TVNZ 1]] airs an hour-long [[20/20 (New Zealand TV programme)|local version]], featuring American-produced stories.

==See also==
* [[Throwaway Kids]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* {{Official website|https://abcnews.go.com/2020}}
* {{IMDb title|0124932}}

{{ABC News Personalities}}
{{ABCNetwork Shows (current and upcoming)}}
{{US Newsmagazine}}

{{Portal bar|United States|Journalism|Television}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:20 20 (American TV program)}}
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[[Category:Peabody Award-winning television programs]]