From 5 to 6pm Friday, CNN Headline News was America’s top-rated cable news network. Why? Because of this car chase.
HLN started simulcasting the Houston chase during the 4:30pm half-hour. The channel averaged 349,000 demo and 756,000 total viewers from 4:30 to 5.
The ratings steadily rose as the car chase continued. From 5 to 5:30pm, HLN averaged 590,000 demo and 1,303,000 total viewers. The situation became a stand-off just before the bottom of the hour. From 5:30 to 6pm, HLN averaged 669,000 demo and 1,521,000 total viewers. The coverage more than doubled FNC and CNN’s demo viewership for the hour.
Prime News Tonight at 6pm benefited from the bump, too: The 6pm hour averaged 275,000 demo and 700,000 total viewers.
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