Feb. #’s: Smaller Cable News Networks Show Greater Growth

MediaWeek wraps up February’s ratings:

“On the news side, the smaller news outlets showed the greatest growth as CNN Headline News soared in prime, elevating its audience by 73 percent to 347,000 total viewers. MSNBC was up 24 percent to 357,000 total viewers, and CNBC jumped 37 percent with 164,000 viewers. CNN was up 3 percent with 657,000 viewers, while ratings king Fox News Channel was off 5 percent, averaging 1.49 million viewers.

In the core 25-54 demo, MSNBC, Headline News and CNBC were up significantly in prime (35 percent, 61 percent and 37 percent, respectively), while CNN was up 3 percent. FNC was off 21 percent in the demo in prime, with 344,000 viewers in the category tuning in.”

Of course, it’s a lot harder for higher-rated networks to show significant increases or decreases, because they’re working with a bigger audience to begin with…