It was an extraordinary month for MSNBC, the self-proclaimed “Place for Politics.” The network benefited from a unique political cycle, and finished No. 1 across cable news in weekday prime time among viewers from the ad-friendly A25-54 demographic, as well as in the younger A18-49 demo.
July 2017 is the second time the network has topped both Fox News and CNN in A25-54 for the month (after May 2017) and the 3rd straight monthly victory in A18-49.
Another rare achievement for the network took place during the dayside daypart (M-F 9 a.m.-5 p.m.). MSNBC beat CNN among total viewers for the 1st time since October 2012 and led CNN for every hour between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.
MSNBC posted +29 percent growth in total prime time viewers, +29 percent growth in total day viewers, +12 percent growth in the prime demo and +16 percent growth in the total day demo compared to the network’s July 2016 ratings.
The ratings for July 2017:
- Primetime (Mon-Sun): 1,730,000 Total Viewers / 388,000 A25-54
- Total Day (Mon-Sun): 926,000 Total Viewers / 210,000 A25-54
Rachel Maddow was the story of the month from a cable news programming perspective. Her’s was the No.1 cable news program for the month of July across all relevant categories, including A18-49, A25-54 and total viewers. For the 9 p.m. hour, Maddow finished No. 1 for the 5th consecutive month in the demo, and the 3rd consecutive month in total viewers.
It was a rather eventful month for MSNBC’s morning show Morning Joe. The co-hosts, Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough, announced that they would be getting married in the spring. Additionally, couple appeared on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and spoke about Pres. Trump’s vulgar attacks on Brzezinski’s appearance.
Through all of that, the show managed to defeat CNN’s New Day in A25-54 and 18-49 for the consecutive month and in total viewers for the 29th consecutive month.
Lastly, AM Joy beat CNN in total viewers, both on Saturdays and on Sundays, and posted double-digit growth in A25-54.
Here’s MSNBC’s press release:
MSNBC WINS A25-54 IN WEEKDAY PRIME IN JULY
MSNBC Dayside Leads CNN in Every Hour Among Total Viewers; Scores 2nd Highest Rated Month Ever in Total Viewers
MSNBC Weekday Prime Ranks #2 Across All Cable Networks in Total Viewers; Draws More Audience Than HGTV, History and TBS
“The Rachel Maddow Show” is the #1 Show for All Cable News in A25-54, A18-49 and Total Viewers
“Morning Joe” Bests CNN in A25-54 and A18-49 for the 2nd Straight Month and in Total Viewers for the 29th Straight Month
“The 11th Hour with Brian Williams” Tops FOX News and CNN in A18-49 and Total Viewers at 11pm for the 3rd Consecutive Month
More People Watch MSNBC Than CNN for Every Single Hour Weekdays from 6am Through 2am
NEW YORK (July 31, 2017) – MSNBC was back on top in weekday prime (M-F 8-11pm) for the month of July, beating FOX News and CNN among A25-54 and A18-49 according to Nielsen. This is the 2nd time the network has topped both FOX News and CNN in A25-54 for the month (after May 2017) and the 3rd straight month in A18-49. MSNBC was in the Top 10 in A25-54 among all cable networks for the month, ranking #6 (vs. FOX News’ #7 and CNN’s #17). In total viewers, MSNBC finished at #2 among all cable networks in weekday prime (ahead of HGTV, History and TBS, just behind FOX News). MSNBC averaged 478,000 A25-54 viewers (vs. FOX News’ 461,000 and CNN’s 316,000); 328,000 A18-49 viewers (vs. FOX News’ 288,000 and CNN’s 247,000); and 2.13 million viewers (vs. CNN’s 961,000). MSNBC is the only news network to post growth over July 2016 in the key demographics: +10% in A25-54 (vs. FOX News’ -31% and CNN’s -54%), +2% in A18-49 (vs. FOX News’ -40% and CNN’s -57%) and +26% in total viewers (vs. FOX News’ -29% and CNN’s -54%).
MSNBC dayside (M-F 9am-5pm) beat CNN among total viewers for the 1st time since October 2012 and led CNN for every hour between 9am and 5pm. Averaging 886,000 total viewers for the month, dayside delivered its 2nd best month ever after June 2017. Dayside posted double-digit growth in A25-54, A18-49 and total viewers, while FOX News and CNN were down in A25-54 and in total viewers from July 2016. MSNBC was up +22% in A25-54 (vs. FOX News’ -1% and CNN’s -10%), +26% in A18-49 (vs. FOX News’ +4% and CNN’s -13%) and +31% in total viewers (vs. FOX News’ -13% and CNN’s -15%).
“The Rachel Maddow Show” finished the month as the #1 show in the entire cable news schedule for three key demos: A25-54, A18-49 and total viewers. For the 9pm time period, “Maddow” was #1 for the 5th consecutive month in A18-49 and A25-54, and the 3rd straight month in total viewers.
“Morning Joe” at 6am continued to lead third-ranked CNN in both A25-54 and A18-49 (both for the 2nd straight month) and in total viewers for the 29th consecutive month. The program has now averaged over 1 million viewers for 3 straight months since May 2017.
For the 3rd consecutive month, “The 11th Hour with Brian Williams” topped both FOX News and CNN in A18-49 and total viewers. “The 11th Hour” also beat CNN in A25-54 for the 3rd straight month.
“The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell” finished July as the #1 show at 10pm in A18-49, topping FOX News and CNN in the time period for the 3rd month in a row. “The Last Word” also beat CNN in A25-54 for the 3rd consecutive month and in total viewers for the 26th straight month.
Two other MSNBC programs outperformed CNN in A25-54: “Hardball with Chris Matthews” at 7pm and “All In with Chris Hayes” at 8pm for the 2nd straight month.
Additionally, more people turned to MSNBC than CNN for every single hour between 6am and 2am on weekdays. The following MSNBC programs also scored higher audiences than CNN: “MSNBC Live with Stephanie Ruhle” at 9am for the 6th straight month, “MSNBC Live with Hallie Jackson” at 10am, “MSNBC Live with Velshi and Ruhle” at 11am, “Andrea Mitchell Reports” at 12pm, “MSNBC Live with Craig Melvin” at 1pm, “MSNBC Live with Katy Tur” at 2pm, “MSNBC Live with Ali Velshi” at 3pm, “Deadline: White House” at 4pm, “MTP Daily” at 5pm, “MSNBC Live”/“The Beat with Ari Melber” at 6pm, “Hardball with Chris Matthews” at 7pm for the 12th straight month, and “All In with Chris Hayes” at 8pm for the 8th straight month.
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