CNN and Fox News had especially strong weeks in the ratings department.
Adults 25-54 flocked to CNN for coverage of the nationwide protests over the police murder of George Floyd and police brutality against Black Americans in general.
For the second consecutive week, CNN was the go-to cable news network in the aforementioned key demo, averaging a whopping 880,000 demo viewers in prime time and 480,000 in total day.
We expect Fox News to deliver massive total audiences, and that trend didn’t change this past week. By averaging nearly 4 million total viewers and 792,000 demo viewers, FNC advanced its streak to 22 straight weeks in total day and 20 weeks in a row in prime time among total viewers. The network also averaged its largest audience for a week in June in the network’s 24-year history.
Even though MSNBC finished behind Fox News and CNN in both of the aforementioned categories, it was still the third-most-watched network on basic cable for the week. Nothing to be particularly disappointed about.
Each network posted audience growth from the prior week, which did include Memorial Day. Fox News was +16% in prime-time viewers and +1% in total day viewers versus the week of May 25. The network was also +22% in the prime-time demo and +7% in the total day demo from the prior week.
CNN was +9% in total prime-time viewers and +3% in total day versus the prior week; +14% in the prime-time demo and +6% in the total day demo.
MSNBC posted the most significant total day audience growth from the prior week: +7% in total day viewers and +8% in the total day demo. The network was also +12% in total prime-time viewers and +15% in the prime-time demo.
Nielsen live-plus-same-day numbers for the week of June 1 (Monday-Sunday):
PRIME TIME (8-11 p.m.)
| FNC | CNN | MSNBC | |
|---|---|---|---|
| • Total Viewers: | 3,978,000 | 2,510,000 | 2,266,000 |
| • A25-54: | 792,000 | 880,000 | 401,000 |
TOTAL DAY (6 a.m.-6 a.m.)
| FNC | CNN | MSNBC | |
|---|---|---|---|
| • Total Viewers: | 2,034,000 | 1,475,000 | 1,352,000 |
| • A25-54: | 415,000 | 480,000 | 231,000 |
Fox News’ prime-time shows all averaged more than 4 million viewers last week, led by Hannity, the most-watched show on cable news (4.8 million). Tucker Carlson finished No. 2 on cable news, averaging just under 4.8 million total viewers, 1 million in the A25-54 demo. Carlson’s 8 p.m. show delivered its second-highest week ever in both categories (since the week of March 23). The Ingraham Angle notched 4.3 million viewers and 910,000 in the younger demo, scoring the program’s highest-rated week in history in both categories, and The Five was the fourth-most-watched cable news show last week.
CNN’s prime-time offerings all averaged more than 1 million adults 25-54, and were the top 3 cable news shows for the week in that measurement. Anderson Cooper 360 was No. 1 on cable news, averaging 1.06 million adults 25-54 for the week. Following him was Cuomo Prime Time (1.04 million) and CNN Tonight with Don Lemon (1.03 million).
As usual, The Rachel Maddow Show was MSNBC’s No. 1 program, averaging 3.5 million total viewers (606,000 in the A25-54 demo) for the week of June 1.
Finally, the basic cable ranker for the week of June 1, sorted by total viewers: