Barbara Walters’ ‘View’ Farewell Draws 5 Million-Plus Viewers

Walters’ “View” swan song ranks as fourth most-watched episode in series history

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Barbara Walters’ final episode on the daytime yak-fest “The View” drew a pretty big crowd — and we’re not talking about the gaggle of newswomen who gathered on stage to bid her farewell.

Friday’s episode of “The View” drew 5.2 million total viewers, according to preliminary numbers. Which is farely impressive, but Walters apparently can’t match the draw of President Barack Obama.

Also read: Former ABC News Anchor Carole Simpson Pissed Over Barbara Walters’ Farewell Snub

Friday’s episode of “The View” ranks as the fourth most-watched episode of the ABC series in its 17-year history. The most-watched episode was on July 29, 2010, when just over 6.6 million viewers tuned in to see Obama’s first visit to the show.

The second most-watched episode was in November 2008, the Day of Hot Topics following Obama’s election, when the show drew 6.2 million total viewers.

See video: Barbara Walters’ ‘View’ Farewell: 5 Standout Moments From Her Last Show

Coming in at number three was the Day of Hot Topics when Walters and the ladies delved into a show storm on the East Coast, in March 2009, with an episode that drew just over 5.2 million total viewers.

In the demos, Walters’ final “View” posted its best numbers since Nov. 7, 2012, grabbing 818,000 viewers in the women 18-49 demo and 1 million in the women 25-54 group.

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