Fox News was the most-watched basic cable network for the week of Dec. 10 across the 24-hour day (6 a.m. – 6 a.m.). That’s now three consecutive weeks that Fox has been at the top of the heap in that daypart.
Per live-plus-same-day data from Nielsen, FNC finished No. 2 in total prime time audience behind ESPN, which continues to deliver significant audiences with Monday Night Football.
FNC also claimed 15 of the top 40 cable telecasts overall in total viewers, including presentations of Hannity, The Five, Tucker Carlson Tonight, The Ingraham Angle, The Five and Special Report with Bret Baier.
With that being said, the network posted double digit year-over-year total audience losses. FNC was -16 percent in total prime time viewers, and -14 percent in total day viewers vs. the comparable week in 2017.
Among all basic cable network, MSNBC ranked No. 4 in prime time viewers, and No. 2 in total day viewers this past week. The network was -3 percent in prime time audience, but +4 percent across the 24-hour day vs. last year.
MSNBC beat Fox News in the prime time demo this past week, 350,000 vs. 327,000.
How?
The Rachel Maddow Show was the No. 1 cable news program for the week, averaging 3.06 million total viewers and 590,000 A25-54 viewers from Monday – Friday. With Maddow in the chair (Monday – Thursday), the broadcast averaged 3.24 million total viewers and 625,750 A25-54 viewers. Joy Reid sat in for Maddow on Friday. Sean Hannity finished in second place across the board. Similar to Maddow, Hannity was off on Friday.
CNN earned top 10 finishes among all basic cable networks last week when it came to total audience. The network ranked No.7 in prime time viewers and No. 6 in total day viewers. Relative to the same week in 2017, CNN was -7 percent in prime time and -4 percent in total day.
Cable News Rankings (Total Viewers) / Mon – Sun
- FNC ranked No. 2 in prime time (2,093,000) / No. 1 in total day (1,290,000)
- MSNBC ranked No. 4 in prime time (1,970,000) and No. 2 in total day (1,147,000)
- CNN ranked No.7 in prime time (1,083,000) and No.6 in total day (776,000)
Cable News Ratings (A25-54) / Mon – Sun
- FNC – Prime time (327,000) / Total Day (222,000)
- MSNBC – Prime time (350,000) / Total Day (207,000)
- CNN – Prime time (304,000) / Total Day (200,000)
Basic Cable Top 10 – Prime Time
- ESPN (2,466,000)
- Fox News (2,093,000)
- Hallmark Channel (2,036,000)
- MSNBC (1,970,000)
- NFL Network (1,550,000)
- USA (1,261,000)
- CNN (1,083,000)
- HGTV (1,070,000)
- A&E (1,039,000)
- Investigation Discovery (1,028,000)
Basic Cable Top 10 – Total Day
- Fox News (1,290,000)
- MSNBC (1,147,000)
- Hallmark Channel (1,103,000)
- Nickelodeon (827,000)
- ESPN (797,000)
- CNN (776,000)
- Investigation Discovery (738,000)
- HGTV (623,000)
- USA (608,000)
- Food Network (574,000)
Business news:
Business Day (9:30 a.m. – 5 p.m. ET)
FBN: 209,000 total viewers / 17,000 A25-54
CNBC: 197,000 total viewers and 34,000 A25-54
Market Hours (9:30 a.m. – 4 p.m. ET)
FBN: 211,000 total viewers / 17,000 A25-54
CNBC: 198,000 total viewers and 35,000 A25-54
Nielsen numbers for the top 5 business programs: