Which Network is Holding on to Viewers?

By Chris Ariens 

As the TV news networks continue to follow developments in the Michael Jackson story, viewer interest is waning some.

On cable, after winning primetime both Thursday and Friday night and winning Total Day and primetime (in A25-54 demo) on Saturday and Sunday, CNN has retained the lowest percentage of viewers while FNC has held the most into Monday.

• Total Viewer retention (Thursday 6/25 vs. Monday 6/29):

Advertisement

Total Day: FNC 105%, CNN 61%, MSNBC 67%

Primetime: FNC 83%, CNN 35%, MSNBC 67%

• A25-54 viewer retention (Thursday 6/25 vs. Monday 6/29):

Total Day: FNC 77%, CNN 46%, MSNBC 53%

Primetime: FNC 50%, CNN 31%, MSNBC 42%

This speaks to a couple things: viewer loyalty — with FNC and MSNBC holding on to their core viewers; and viewer disinterest — with the millions who flocked to CNN for breaking news, moving on to other programming, or none at all.

Advertisement