More people watched Fox News any given day or night in October than tuned in to CNN and MSNBC combined, according to Nielsen Media Research. By every metric, Fox News crushed its cable news rivals last month, continuing a long streak, by TVNewser's count: 202 consecutive months as the most-watched cable news network, 28 straight months as the No. 1 basic cable network during the day, and five consecutive months as top basic cable network in prime time. Fox News had all Top 5 rated cable news shows, led by Hannity, and MSNBC's Rachel Maddow Show finished sixth. The top-rated CNN show was Cuomo Prime Time, ranked No. 23 in cable news.
An average of 2.8 million people watched Fox News each night last month, Nielsen said, versus 1.58 million for MSNBC and CNN's 931,000 viewers. CNN edged out MSNBC among viewers aged 25 to 54, but Fox News easily won that demographic, too. October "was quite a newsy month, from Hurricane Michael, to coverage of bomb threats, the domestic terror attack in a Pittsburgh synagogue, and a 'migrant caravan' in the latter half of the month," TVNewser notes, but that doesn't explain why CNN ranked ninth in basic cable, behind The Hallmark Channel. As for Fox News, the network averaged more viewers overall last month than in October 2016, right before a presidential election.
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.
-
Cherry blossom season: Washington diners’ happy timefeature The five best spots to enjoy the festivities
-
Why is the US bombing Yemen in the first place?In the Spotlight The Trump administration's snowballing "Signalgate" scandal has helped refocus public attention onto one of the nation's least-understood military entanglements
-
South Korean commission exposes history of fraud and abuse in overseas adoptionsThe Explainer The largest exporter of international adoptees allowed fraud to flourish, as the government pushed the adoption agenda
-
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
-
Rupert Murdoch loses 'Succession' court battleSpeed Read Murdoch wanted to give full control of his empire to son Lachlan, ensuring Fox News' right-wing editorial slant
