4th of July Viewing Guide: What to Watch on TV and Streaming

The Fourth of July has finally arrived, and for those who are planning to hibernate inside this year, there are still plenty of ways you can celebrate from the comfort of your couch.

From hot dog eating contests, to concerts and series-marathons, this year’s Independence Day TV lineup is stacked. And if you are on the hunt for some fireworks, there are plenty of ways to watch for free on the screen if you are hoping to avoid the chaos.

Here is your 4th of July viewing guide for 2024. And if you’re ditching the celebrations entirely, there are still lots of non-patriotic programs available to binge-watch.

“Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular”

8:00 p.m. ET/PT on NBC and Peacock

Macy’s is back this year with their 48th annual “4th of July Fireworks Spectacular.” The special will be hosted by four-time nominated Grammy country artist Mickey Guyton and Zuri Hall from Access Hollywood. As usual, the spectacle will feature live fireworks straight from NYC, musical performances, and more.

“A Capitol Fourth”

6:00 p.m. PT/9:00 p.m ET on PBS

This year’s rendition of PBS’s “A Capitol Fourth” will be hosted by actor Alfonso Ribeiro. Along with the firework show, there will be special performances by Smokey Robinson, Fantasia, Darren Criss, Sheila E., Fitz and Noelle from Fitz and the Tantrums, Chloe Flower, Sister Sledge Ft. Sledgendary, Loren Allred, Shawn Johnson East, Britt Stewart and Jack Everly, along with the National Symphony Orchestra, The Choral Arts Society of Washington, Patrick Lyndy and the Ministers of Music, the United States Army Band, the U.S. Army Herald Trumpets and the U.S. Army Chorus and more.

Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest

Women’s competition: 10:45 a.m. ET/7:45 a.m. PT on ESPN3

Men’s competition: 12:00 p.m. ET/9:00 a.m. PT on ESPN2

The highly anticipated “Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest” will still commence this year, despite the absence of reigning 16-time champion Joey Chestnut. The competitors will compete to take home $20,000 cash and, more importantly, the Yellow Mustard Belt. The competition is separated by men and woman, and for the first time in years, the men have a fighting chance. For thos planning to sleep in this holiday — the competitions will re-air at 5 p.m. ET and 9 p.m. ET on ESPN.

USA Soldiers Hot Dog Eating Contest ft. Joey Chestnut

5:00 p.m. ET/2:00p.m. PT on Youtube

For the Chestnut super-fans who were disappointed about his absence from the Nathan’s competition, don’t you worry —  you can still watch him devouring some hot dogs this Independence Day. He will appear at “Pop Goes the Fort” in El Paso, Texas.

In this contest, Chestnut will be going up against four U.S. soldiers. Rather than competing as individuals, he will aim to beat the total number of hot dogs consumed by all four of them. The competition will last for five minutes, half the time of the 10-minute Nathan’s competition.

“The Fourth in America”

7:00 p.m. ET/PT on CNN/CNN International/CNN Max

The lineup for CNN’s 5th annual “The Fourth in America” special will consist of firework shows and an absolutely stacked concert line up. The concert series will feature performances from Bebe Rexha, The Kid LAROI, The Killers, The Goo Goo Dolls, Kane Brown, T-Pain, Bleachers, Keith Urban, Ashanti, REO Speedwagon, Chris Young, Yellowcard, Ben Platt, Boys Like Girls, and En Vogue. There will also be a special performance from The United States Air Force Band.

CNN will air live firework shows from all over the country, including Boston, Chicago, Fort Lauderdale, Houston, Las Vegas, Nashville, Niagara Falls, New Orleans, New York City, Philadelphia, St. Louis, San Diego and Seward, Alaska. The special will be hosted by CNN Anchor and Chief Political Correspondent Dana Bash and CNN Anchor Boris Sanchez from Washington DC along.

CNN Anchor and correspondent Victor Blackwell and CNN Anchor and Senior National Correspondent Sara Sidner will also host from San Diego.

The show will also stream live on CNN Max and for pay TV subscribers on CNN.com, CNN connected TV and mobile apps. 

“Proud American Franchise” and “The Big Independence Day Special”

All day on Fox News/Fox News and 8:00p.m. ET

FOX will be airing their “Proud American” franchise series all day long. Throughout the day they will air an array of patriotic-themed programming. The special coverage is presented by Tunnel to Towers and will be broadcast live.

At 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT, coverage will switch over to “The Big Independence Day Special.” FNC’s co-hosts Carley Shimkus, Lawrence Jones, Aishah Hasnie and Johnny Joey Jones will present this two-hour live program from Fox Square in New York City.

The special includes live fireworks broadcasted from Washington, D.C., Bristol, RI, and Point Pleasant, NJ. Along with the fireworks, there will be musical performances from country artist Frank Ray. Veterans and viewers will also be broadcasted live during the segment.

“The Price Is Right 4th of July Special”

11 a.m. ET/PT on CBS

What better way to celebrate the USA than with America’s favorite game show, “The Price Is Right?” The team will celebrate the 4th with Plinko, giving contestants the chance to win up to $50,000.

In the episode, players will get the chance to win all-American cars, a backyard BBQ, and a 20 foot party boat. The holiday special episode also marks the 50th anniversary of the popular “Card Game,” in which contestants take their chances with a deck of cards to win a new car.

“Twilight Zone” Marathon(s)

Both H&I Network and SYFY will run “Twilight Zone” Marathons yet again this year. For any “Twilight Zone” fans who have Thursday and Friday off, this could be the best option for you.

“Rod, White & Blue” begins on July 4 at 6:00 a.m. ET/9:00 am PT and continues through July 7 at 6 a.m. ET/9:00 am PT on H&I Network.

“Syfy Twilight Zone Day Marathon” begins on July 4 at 6:00 a.m. ET/9:00 am PT.. and runs for 24 hours on SYFY.

“Americas Funniest Home Videos” Mini-Marathon

8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC

On the day where we celebrate the country, it makes sense that ABC wants to celebrate America at its funniest. If you are in need of some light-hearted content this holiday, this is the option for you.

The marathon will be available to watch on the ABC app and ABC.com

“Chicago” Crossover Marathon

12 p.m. ET/PT on ION

ION will be airing episodes of both “ChicagoFire” and “Chicago PD” this fourth of July.

Check out which episodes will be airing back to back here.

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