May 2011 Ratings: Shepard Smith Grows, While Glenn Beck Fades

By Alex Weprin 

Fox News remained the top cable news channel in both total viewers and adults 25-54 for the month of May. News anchor Shepard Smith continues to perform strongly, with his “Fox Report” placing in the top five cable news shows in both total and demo viewers.

The ratings for May, 2011:

  • Primetime (Mon-Sun): 1.858M Total Viewers / 429K A25-54
  • Total Day (Mon-Sun): 1.085M Total Viewers / 284K A25-54

Smith’s show and “Fox & Friends” were the only Fox News programs to grow in both total and demo viewers compared to May, 2010. “The O’Reilly Factor” and “Hannity” both grew slightly in total viewers, but were down in the demo.

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The program that saw the most precipitous drop in viewers was “Glenn Beck,” which was down -17% in total viewers and -33% in demo viewers compared to May, 2010.

“F&F” hit a ratings milestone, as it has now been the top cable news morning show for 115 straight months.

All told, FNC topped MSNBC and CNN combined in total viewers, in both primetime and total day.

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