When it comes to cable news, President Trump is a rising tide that lifts all boats. "Beneficiaries include both the network he likes (Fox News Channel) and those he hates/threatens (everyone else)," Deadline reports. CNN, one of Trump's favorite targets, posted its highest ratings ever in total and total day viewership and notched its second-most-watched primetime year since 2008. For the first time since 1995, the original cable news network cracked the Top 10 of all basic cable channels, ranking No. 7 overall, No. 10 in primetime, and No. 5 in total day viewership.
If it was a good year for CNN, it was a great one for MSNBC. Its primetime viewership jumped by 51 percent in Trump's first year, including 37 percent in the key 25-54 demographic. MSNBC ranked No. 3 in primetime among cable networks and also in total day viewership. Rachel Maddow was the network's biggest ratings draw, though with an average of 2.5 million viewers she was still more than a million behind Fox News' Sean Hannity, with nearly 3.2 million viewers (Hannity and Maddow tied in the 18-49 demographic). Fox News was, for a second year running, the No. 1 basic cable network in primetime and total day viewers.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Book reviews: 'The Thinking Machine: Jensen Huang, Nvidia, and the World’s Most Coveted Microchip' and 'Who Is Government? The Untold Story of Public Service'Feature The tech titan behind Nvidia's success and the secret stories of government workers
-
Mario Vargas Llosa: The novelist who lectured Latin AmericaFeature The Peruvian novelist wove tales of political corruption and moral compromise
-
How to see the Lyrid meteor showerThe explainer A nice time to look to the skies
-
Markets notch worst quarter in years as new tariffs loomSpeed Read The S&P 500 is on track for its worst month since 2022 as investors brace for Trump's tariffs
-
Tesla Cybertrucks recalled over dislodging panelsSpeed Read Almost every Cybertruck in the US has been recalled over a stainless steel panel that could fall off
-
Crafting emporium Joann is going out of businessSpeed Read The 82-year-old fabric and crafts store will be closing all 800 of its stores
-
Trump's China tariffs start after Canada, Mexico pausesSpeed Read The president paused his tariffs on America's closest neighbors after speaking to their leaders, but his import tax on Chinese goods has taken effect
-
Chinese AI chatbot's rise slams US tech stocksSpeed Read The sudden popularity of a new AI chatbot from Chinese startup DeepSeek has sent U.S. tech stocks tumbling
-
US port strike averted with tentative labor dealSpeed Read The strike could have shut down major ports from Texas to Maine
-
Biden expected to block Japanese bid for US SteelSpeed Read The president is blocking the $14 billion acquisition of U.S. Steel by Japan's Nippon Steel, citing national security concerns
-
Judges block $25B Kroger-Albertsons mergerSpeed Read The proposed merger between the supermarket giants was stalled when judges overseeing two separate cases blocked the deal
