Fox News

FNC’s “The Five” is Number One Show in Viewers; “Tucker Carlson Tonight” Most-Watched in 25-54 Demographic

FNC Notches Top 118 Cable Telecasts; Only Network to Post Gains Versus Prior Year while Cable News Competitors Shed Viewers

MSNBC Delivers Lowest-Rated Total Day Demo Dating Back to 1999; Loses Nearly Half of its Audience in Primetime Demo Year-Over-Year

NEW YORK – June 1, 2022 – FOX News Channel (FNC) finished May of 2022 as cable’s most-watched network in total day viewers and notched its second highest-rated May with total day viewers in network history, behind only May 2020. According to Nielsen Media Research, FNC surpassed CNN and MSNBC combined across the board and outpaced the competition in weekday total day viewers and the key 25-54 demographic for the 10^th consecutive month. FNC also ranked number one in all of basic cable in total day viewers for the 15^th month in a row and notched 118 of the top 119 cable telecasts for the month. Notably, FNC was the only cable news network to post gains versus May of 2021 in viewers, while CNN and MSNBC experienced double-digit declines across the board in all categories. Notably, MSNBC experienced its lowest-rated month with total day demo since November 1999 and its lowest-rated in primetime demo dating back to May 2004. In total day, FNC delivered 1.5 million viewers, 229,000 with the 25-54 demo and 140,000 with the 18-49 demo. In primetime, FNC netted 2.3 million viewers, 351,000 in the 25-54 demo, and 214,000 with the 18-49 demo. The network also delivered the top seven programs in cable news with viewers and the top 15 programs in the 25-54 and 18-49 demo.

Since the start of the war in Ukraine, FNC has remained the go-to destination for breaking news coverage, earning double digit advantages over CNN and widening to triple digits over MSNBC across the board. FNC’s cable news audience share increased to 56% across total day and 57% with primetime viewers and according to Nielsen MRI Fusion data, continues to be the most watched network among all political spectrums. FNC is watched by more Independents than MSNBC and CNN in total day and primetime demo and is the preferred network of Democrats, with more tuning into FNC than both MSNBC and CNN in total day and primetime 25-54 demo.

At 5 PM/ET, FNC’s late afternoon offering The Five continued to make television history, earning the top-rated spot in viewers for the month and finishing the last five out of six months leading cable news. The roundtable program averaged 3.3 million viewers and 447,000 with 25-54 demo, outpacing every show on CNN and MSNBC across the board. At 8 PM/ET, Tucker Carlson Tonight continued as the highest-rated program in cable news in the younger 25-54 demo, averaging 3.2 million viewers and 522,000 in the demo, as well as 319,000 in the 18-49 category throughout May. Hannity at 9 PM/ET scored 2.7 million viewers, 428,000 in the 25-54 demo and 255,000 among adults 18-49, topping MSNBC’s The Rachel Maddow Show and CNN combined in both categories. At 10 PM/ET, The Ingraham Angle’s Laura Ingraham remained the most-watched female in cable news, garnering 2.3 million viewers, 382,000 in the 25-54 demo and 231,000 in 18-49.

Evening newscast Special Report with Bret Baier (weeknights, 6 PM/ET) averaged 2.5 million viewers and 348,000 in the 25-54 demo, dominating its timeslot and rounding out the top five programs in viewers for the month of May. At 7 PM/ET, FNC’s Jesse Watters Primetime finished as the fourth highest-rated cable news program, averaging 2.6 million viewers and 362,000 in the 25-54 demo, closing another month as the fastest-growing program in cable news. On MSNBC during the same hour, The ReidOut notched its lowest-rated month across both categories since its inception and dipped below 1 million viewers for the first time. At 12 AM/ET, FOX News @ Night with Shannon Bream surpassed the competition, delivering over 1 million viewers and 231,000 in A25-54.

FNC’s late night program, Gutfeld!, continued as the second most-watched late night show in all of broadcast and cable. Airing at 11 PM/ET, the program also topped every show on CNN and MSNBC in total viewers and the younger 25-54 demo. Gutfeld! averaged over 2 million viewers 359,000 with A25-54 this month, outpacing ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live! and NBC’s The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon in total viewers. Additionally, the program surpassed CBS’ The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on several occasions in viewers throughout May. FNC’s late night show also topped Comedy Central’s The Daily Show and TBS’ Full Frontal with Samantha Bee across the board in total viewers and the younger 25-54 demo. Gutfeld! also has the highest median income in all of late night television (ABC, CBS and NBC) in the younger 25-54 demo as well as the most upscale audience in total viewers and A25-54.

From 4-6 AM/ET, FOX & Friends FIRST garnered 583,000 viewers. FNC’s signature morning show FOX & Friends (weekdays, 6-9 AM/ET) finished May with 1.4 million viewers and 241,000 in the demo, easily outpacing CNN’s New Day and MSNBC’s Morning Joe combined across both categories. In fact, the program beat every offering on CNN in total viewers and both CNN and MSNBC in the 25-54 demo. FOX & Friends continues to make its mark as the number one cable news program in the mornings in both categories for the 14^th consecutive month.

FNC’s daytime lineup, kicking off with two-hour morning news program, America’s Newsroom with Bill Hemmer and Dana Perino (weekdays, 9-11 AM/ET), delivered 1.7 million viewers and 258,000 in the 25-54 demo. The Faulkner Focus at 11 AM/ET, anchored by Harris Faulkner, notched 1.7 million viewers and 243,000 in the 25-54 demo and bested CNN and MSNBC across the board. At 12 PM/ET, Outnumbered earned 1.8 million viewers and 262,000 in the demo. From 1-3 PM/ET, America Reports with John Roberts and Sandra Smith garnered 1.5 million viewers and 230,000 in the 25-54 demo. At 3 PM/ET, anchor and executive editor Martha MacCallum’s The Story averaged 1.5 million viewers and 220,000 in the 25-54 demo, while Your World with Neil Cavuto at 4 PM/ET also nabbed 1.5 million viewers and 227,000 in the 25-54 category for the month. Notably, FNC’s Outnumbered, America’s Newsroom and The Faulkner Focus topped CBS’ The Talk, NBC’s TODAY with Hoda & Jenna and ABC’s GMA3 in viewers.

FNC continued to excel against the competition on weekends throughout the month, outpacing CNN and MSNBC combined across all categories and dayparts. Unfiltered with Dan Bongino (Saturdays, 9PM/ET) was the most-watched program in viewers on Saturday, earning 1.4 million viewers and 175,000 with A25-54. FNC’s 8 PM/ET addition to its Saturday primetime lineup, One Nation helmed by Brian Kilmeade, garnered 1.3 million and 168,000 in the 25-54 demo. FNC’s Lawrence Jones, the youngest Black solo primetime host in cable news, scored 1.2 million viewers and 172,000 in the demo at 10 PM/ET with Lawrence Jones Cross Country. In the mornings, FNC’s FOX & Friends Weekend was the most-watched program on Saturday in the 25-54 demo, averaging 193,000 viewers and 1.3 million total viewers. Additionally, Cavuto Live at 10 AM/ET was in the top five programs in both categories with 1.3 million viewers and 170,000 in the 25-54 demo.

On Sundays, FNC’s Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo (Sundays, 10 AM/ET) earned the top-rated spot in both viewers and the coveted 25-54 category, with 1.7 million viewers and 232,000 in the demo. MediaBuzz, hosted by Howard Kurtz at 11 AM/ET, delivered 1.4 million viewers and 192,000 in the 25-54 demo, outpacing CNN’s Reliable Sources across the board for the month and holding a 103% advantage in viewers and a 61% advantage in the demo over the CNN program. CNN’s Reliable Sources averaged 669,000 viewers and 119,000 with A25-54, down double digits across the board versus the prior year.  Meanwhile, FNC’s Sunday Night in America with Trey Gowdy (Sundays, 7 PM/ET), outpaced every CNN weekday program in total viewers, drawing an audience of 1.5 million viewers and 150,000 in the 25-54 demo, rounding out the top three programs in viewers for the month. At 8 PM/ET, Life Liberty and Levin earned 1.6 million viewers and 170,000 in the demo, while The Next Revolution with host Steve Hilton (Sundays, 9 PM/ET) secured 1.3 million viewers and 154,000 in the demo. Notably, FOX & Friends Weekend (weekends from 6-10 AM/ET) outdrew CNN and MSNBC every hour in total viewers and the 25-54 demo during the month, earning 1.3 million viewers and 194,000 with A25-54 on Sunday. MSNBC’s newly-launched weekend program Symone hosted by former Senior Advisor to Vice President Kamala Harris Symone Sanders was down double-digits among total viewers and the 25-54 demo versus 1Q’22 and down double-digits among the prior four weeks in total viewers. Symone was defeated by Nickelodeon’s Shrek, repeats of Frasier airing on the Hallmark Channel, TV Land’s Andy Griffith Show and others.

MAY 2022 RATINGS FOR THE TOP FIVE PROGRAMS IN CABLE NEWS:

Total Viewers: The Five (3,279,000), Tucker Carlson Tonight (3,233,000), Hannity (2,720,000), Jesse Watters Primetime (2,646,000), Special Report with Bret Baier (2,475,000)

Adults 25-54: Tucker Carlson Tonight (522,000), The Five (447,000), Hannity (428,000), The Ingraham Angle (382,000), Jesse Watters Primetime (362,000)

MAY 2022 VS. MAY 2021 NIELSEN NUMBERS (seven day week, L+SD):

TOTAL DAY

FNC: 1,458,000 total viewers – up 23% (229,000 in 25-54 – up 12%)

CNN: 500,000 total viewers – down 19% (106,000 in 25-54 – down 29%)

MSNBC: 634,000 total viewers – down 24% (70,000 in 25-54 – down 37%)

PRIMETIME

FNC: 2,268,000 total viewers – up 4% (351,000 in 25-54)

CNN: 660,000 total viewers – down 28% (150,000 in 25-54 – down 32%)

MSNBC: 1,018,000 total viewers – down 32% (105,000 in 25-54 – down 48%)

FOX News Channel (FNC) is a 24-hour all-encompassing news service and has been the number one network in basic cable for the last six years and the most-watched television news channel for more than 20 consecutive years, currently attracting more than 50% of the cable news viewing audience according to Nielsen Media Research. Notably, Nielsen/MRI Fusion has consistently shown FNC to be the network of choice for more Democrat and Independent viewers, with the most politically diverse audience in cable news. Additionally, a 2021 Brand Keys Customer Loyalty Engagement Index report stated FOX News leads the news industry in both brand loyalty, engagement, and expectations while a 2022 Brand Keys poll showed FNC dominating morning and evening news in customer loyalty engagement. Owned by Fox Corporation, FNC is available in nearly 80 million homes and dominates the cable news landscape, routinely notching the top 15 programs in the genre.

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Media Relations Contact

Alexandra Coscia: alexandria.coscia@fox.com or (212) 301-3272