Fox News, still by far the #1 cable news network, was not immune to a loss in viewership for the month of March and for the first quarter of 2012. For the month, Fox News is down -17% in Total Viewers and down -27% in younger viewers for Total Day viewing vs. March 2011. The loss in Primetime is not as great: -9% in Total Viewers and -26% in younger viewers.
The ratings for March, 2012:
- Primetime (Mon-Sun): 1.862M Total Viewers / 394K A25-54
- Total Day (Mon-Sun): 1.017M Total Viewers / 249K A25-54
For the first quarter, the network was down -5% in Total Viewers and down -10% in younger viewers for Total Day. And flat (-1%) in total viewers and down -11% in younger viewers in Primetime.
The ratings for Q1, 2012:
- Primetime (Mon-Sun): 1.917M Total Viewers / 423K A25-54
- Total Day (Mon-Sun): 1.073M Total Viewers / 263K A25-54
For the month of March, every Fox News show lost viewership compared to March 2011, which saw the earthquake and tsunami in Japan as well as the continued coverage of the Arab Spring. For the first quarter, “Fox & Friends” (+5%) and “On The Record with Greta Van Susteren” (+1%) were the only two Fox News shows from 6am-MidnightET to see growth in Total Viewers, though both were down in A25-54 viewers.
For the quarter, Fox News boasts the Top 11 shows in cable news in Total Viewers and eight of the Top 10 in younger viewers. Rachel Maddow on MSNBC and Anderson Cooper (at 10pm) on CNN hold the 8th and 9th spots in younger viewers.
Fox News’s newest show, “The Five,” continues to grow. The show had its best quarter since launch last Summer.