Fox News Channel continued to crush CNN and MSNBC last week as Americans turned to the network for information and analysis on everything from fallout of the FBI’s Mar-a-Lago raid to the ongoing saga of migrants being sent from Texas to sanctuary cities in the northeast.
Fox News averaged 1.4 million total viewers from Aug. 15-21 while no other basic cable networks surpassed the one-million plateau. During the primetime hours of 8-11 p.m. ET, Fox News also dominated cable with an average audience of 2.3 million compared to 1.4 million for No. 2 MSNBC.
Fox News has outdrawn both CNN and MSNBC for 79 straight weeks among both total and primetime viewers.
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Fox News averaged 208,000 viewers among the advertiser-coveted demographic of adults age 25-54 to win that category, too.
"The Five" averaged 3.4 million viewers to finish as the most-watched cable news program of the week, while "Tucker Carlson Tonight" averaged 470,000 demo viewers to finish No. 1 in the critical category.
"Hannity" finished third with 2.9 million viewers, thumping the premiere week of MSNBC’s "Alex Wagner Tonight" by 66% in the 9 p.m. ET timeslot. Wagner's show is airing Tuesdays through Fridays in the former time slot of "The Rachel Maddow Show," which now only airs on Mondays.
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"Gutfeld!" averaged 2.3 million viewers to outdraw NBC’s "The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon" and ABC’s "Jimmy Kimmel Live!"
Fox News topped CNN and MSNBC combined over the weekend in both total day and primetime viewership. "Unfiltered with Dan Bongino" averaged 1.5 million viewers to finish as the most-watched cable news program on Saturday, while "FOX & Friends Weekend" averaged 205,000 demo viewers to win the key category.
On Sunday, CNN’s final episode of the now-canceled "Reliable Sources" with Brian Stelter averaged 769,000 viewers, losing to Fox News’ "MediaBuzz" by 81%. Stelter, who was dumped by CNN last week but given the chance to host a final episode, averaged only 105,000 demo viewers for his farewell to lose by 110% to "MediaBuzz."
"Life, Liberty & Levin" was Sunday’s most-watched show with an average audience of nearly two million, while "Sunday Morning Futures" won the key demo with 234,000 viewers age 25-54.
All data courtesy of Nielsen Media Research.
