Fox News was the most-watched cable network in total day for the 30th consecutive week, per Nielsen. Additionally, the network has now won prime time in total viewers for 10 straight weeks, Monday through Sunday.
FNC was -26 in total prime time viewers and -17 percent in total day viewers from the week of July 25, 2016.
MSNBC finished No. 2 across basic cable in total prime time viewers this past week, and posted +40 percent year-over-year audience growth. The network ranked No. 3 in total day viewers, and posted +42 percent year-over-year growth.
CNN ranked No. 8 in total prime time viewers, but was -43 percent from the comparable week last year. The network finished No. 5 in total day viewers, but was -20 percent from last year.
These double digit declines posted by CNN and Fox News were due to higher-than-usual audiences each network hauled in from the 2016 Democratic National Convention (July 25 – July 28, 2016).
Here’s a look at the five most-watched basic cable networks for the full calendar week:
Basic Cable Top 5 – Prime Time (Total Viewers)
- Fox News (2,102,000)
- MSNBC (1,871,000)
- HGTV (1,467,000)
- USA (1,445,000)
- Discovery (1,404,000)
Basic Cable Top 5 – Total Day (Total Viewers)
- Fox News (1,306,000)
- Nickelodeon (1,149,000)
- MSNBC (1,012,000)
- HGTV (821,000)
- CNN (760,000)
Here’s the basic cable network ranker for the entire week: