MSNBC finished a tumultuous year still stuck in third place overall, but showing growth in 4Q 2015. But overall, it was a down year, with significant declines in both prime (-19 percent) and total day (-18 percent) in the A25-54 demo.
The ratings for 2015 (Nielsen Live + Same Day data):
- Primetime (Mon-Sun): 579,000 Total Viewers / 137,000 A25-54
- Total Day (Mon-Sun): 352,000 Total Viewers / 89,000 A25-54
With a revamped dayside lineup unveiled in September, MSNBC is eager to point to its performance in 4Q 2015, where the new weekday schedule (9 a.m. -5 p.m.) was up +38 percent among total viewers and +16 percent in the A25-54 demo compared to 4Q 2014.
Morning Joe, Hardball with Chris Matthews, The Rachel Maddow Show and The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell each beat CNN among total viewers for the sixth consecutive year.
MSNBC’s full ratings release:
MSNBC PROGRAMS RACK UP RECORD YEAR-TO-YEAR GROWTH IN THE DEMO AND TOTAL VIEWERS FOR FOURTH QUARTER 2015
Morning Joe, Hardball, The Rachel Maddow Show and The Last Word Top CNN for Sixth Consecutive Year
NEW YORK – December 30, 2015 – MSNBC had record year to year growth in the 25-54 demo and total viewers for the fourth quarter of 2015. In dayside, the newly revamped Monday-Friday 9a-5p time period was up 38% in total viewers and 16% in the 25-54 demo over last year’s fourth quarter. In primetime, Monday-Friday 8-11p was up 10% in the demo and 24% in total viewers. “Morning Joe” (413,000 vs. 361,000), “Hardball with Chris Matthews” (742,000 vs. 621,000), “The Rachel Maddow Show” (849,000 vs. 580,000) and “The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell” (639,000 vs. 564, 0000) surpassed CNN in total viewers for the sixth consecutive year.
“Morning Joe” was up 47% in total viewers and 18% in the 25-54 demo for the fourth quarter of 2015 over last year. For the quarter, “Morning Joe” also topped CNN (511,000 vs. 413,000). “Hardball with Chris Matthews” was up 19% in total viewers and 7% in the 25-54 demo for the fourth quarter and topped CNN in 2015 (868,000 vs. 783,000). “The Rachel Maddow Show” was up 26% in total viewers and 18% in the demo and beat CNN (968,000 vs. 673,000) for 2015. “The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell” was up 23% in total viewers and 9% in the demo and ahead of CNN (735,000 vs. 628,000) for 2015. “All In with Chris Hayes” also saw impressive growth for the fourth quarter over last year, up 26% in total viewers and 15% in the demo.
In the fourth quarter of 2015, many of MSNBC’s daytime programs M-F 9a-5p showed double digit growth over the same time period last year. For the year, “MSNBC Live with Tamron Hall” (16%), “Andrea Mitchell Reports” (10%), and “MSNBC Live with Thomas Roberts” (14%), all posted double digit growth in total viewers.