Fox News Channel was the most-watched prime time cable network for the week of April 11, delivering a 1.8 million total viewer average during the daypart. FNC finished No. 2 the previous week behind TBS, which got a significant boost from Final Four action. With the college basketball season now complete, Fox News took the top spot, despite losing almost 7 percent of its total prime time audience from the previous week.
Interestingly, Fox News was the most-watched prime time cable network for the comparable week in 2015, averaging 1.7 million total viewers during the daypart. The network experienced a 7 percent improvement in total prime time viewers year-over-year.
TBS was the second-most-watched prime time cable network this past week, with HGTV, ESPN and TNT rounding out the top five.
CNN had a great week in its own right. Thursday’s Democratic debate in Brooklyn and multiple town halls provided the network with a top 10 finish in terms of average total viewers (No. 7). CNN finished No. 13 the previous week, and No. 27 for the comparable week in 2015.
In terms of the actual numbers, CNN improved by 50 percent from the previous week in average prime time viewers, and a whopping 158 percent from the comparable week in 2015.
MSNBC fell from the previous week in average prime time viewers (15 percent), but was much improved from the comparable week in 2015 (43 percent).