MSNBC continued to struggle in the ratings department in October. Compared to October, 2013 — when partisan gridlock in Washington drove viewers to cable news — the network was down -48% in the demo and down -37% in total viewers in primetime. For total day viewing, MSNBC shed -42% in the demo and -34% among total viewers.
The ratings for October, 2014 (Nielsen Live + Same Day data):
- Primetime (Mon-Sun): 502,000 Total Viewers / 122,000 A25-54
- Total Day (Mon-Sun): 323,000 Total Viewers / 84,000 A25-54
MSNBC edged CNN for second place in primetime for the month. Still, MSNBC had its least-watched primetime since December 2007 in total viewers and least watched since July 2005 in the demo.
“Hardball,” at 7pmET, “The Rachel Maddow Show” at 9pmET, and “The Last Word” at 10pmET ranked #2 in their timeslots (behind Fox News, ahead of CNN) among total viewers for the month. More from MSNBC in their release, after the jump…
MSNBC TOPS CNN IN PRIMETIME FOR OCTOBER
“Hardball,” “The Rachel Maddow Show,” and “The Last Word” Rank #2 in Total Viewers
MSNBC Continues to Have the Most Diverse Audience in Cable News
NEW YORK – October 28, 2014 – MSNBC topped CNN in primetime total viewers 583,000 (vs. CNN’s 509,000) for the month of October according to data from Nielsen. “Hardball” with Chris Matthews at 7 p.m. ET, “The Rachel Maddow Show” at 9 p.m. ET and “The Last Word” with Lawrence O’Donnell at 10 p.m. ET all ranked #2 in total viewers for the month.
“Hardball” ranked #2 among total viewers for the month with 726,000 (vs. CNN’s 590,000). “The Rachel Maddow Show” was #2 in total viewers with 725,000 total viewers (CNN had 516,000). “The Last Word” ranked #2 among total viewers with 544,000 (vs. CNN’s 479,000).
MSNBC also ranked #1 in Weekend Sales Prime (M-Su 7p-2a) among A25-54 for the 18th straight month.
MSNBC continued as the most diverse cable news network. MSNBC ranked #1 in African-American audiences for total viewers in weekday primetime (M-F 8p-11p), prime (M-Su 8p-11p), sales day (M-Su 6a-2a) and weekend sales prime (Sa-Su 7p-2a) for the month. MSNBC ranked #1 among African-American total viewers for the 56th consecutive month in M-Su sales primetime. MSNBC also ranked #1 in Hispanic audiences for total viewers for weekend sales prime.