It was a strong week for cable news, ratings-wise, with Fox News leading the charge. Per Nielsen, FNC was the most-watched cable network for the week of Jan. 30, both in total prime time viewers and in total day viewers. Fox News also ranked No. 1 in the news demo for total day (6 a.m. – 6 a.m.), and No. 2 in the prime time demo, only behind TBS. Below is the rest of the top 5:
Basic Cable Top 5 – Prime time (Total Viewers)
- Fox News (3,266,000)
- HGTV (1,644,000)
- USA (1,550,000)
- MSNBC (1,478,000)
- TBS (1,340,000)
Basic Cable Top 5 – Total Day (Total Viewers)
- Fox News (1,911,000)
- Nickelodeon (1,159,000)
- HGTV (890,000)
- CNN (862,000)
- Adult Swim (823,000)
Basic Cable Top 5 – Prime time (A25-54)
- TBS (728,000)
- Fox News (708,000)
- USA (697,000)
- Discovery (586,000)
- HGTV (585,000)
Basic Cable Top 5 – Total Day (A25-54)
- Fox News (415,000)
- Adult Swim (396,000)
- Investigation Discovery (340,000)
- HGTV (331,000)
- USA (327,000)
Fox News delivered year-over-year growth in total prime time viewers (+44 percent), and in total day viewers (+42 percent) Additionally, this past week, FNC notched nine out of the top 10 telecasts in total viewers, including various episodes of The Five, Special Report with Bret Baier, The First 100 Days, The O’Reilly Factor, Tucker Carlson Tonight and Hannity.
MSNBC ranked No. 4 in total prime time viewers, and grew +22 percent from the comparable week in 2016. The network ranked No. 7 in total day viewers, and grew +41 percent in the daypart from the same week last year. Additionally, MSNBC ranked No. 17 in the prime time demo (A25-54).
CNN ranked No. 6 in total prime time viewers, and was -2 percent from the same week last year. The network ranked No. 4 in total day viewers this past week, and grew +22 percent from the same week last year. Additionally, CNN ranked No. 8 in the prime time demo.
HLN had a down week relative to last year. The network ranked No. 46 in total prime time viewers (-14 percent year-over-year) and No. 38 in total day viewers (-19 percent year-over-year). The network ranked No. 52 in the prime time demo.
CNBC ranked No. 52 in total prime time viewers (-36 percent year-over-year) and No. 59 in total day viewers (-20 percent year-over-year). The network ranked No.46 in the prime time demo, and No. 60 in the total day demo.
Fox Business ranked No. 72 in total prime time viewers (+80 percent year-over-year), and shot up to No. 53 in total viewers (+86 percent), defeating its rival in that category. That said, FBN ranked No. 88 in the prime time demo, and No. 81 in the total day demo, behind CNBC.