FOX NEWS CHANNEL MAKES HISTORY AS THE MOST-WATCHED CABLE NEWS CHANNEL FOR 16 CONSECUTIVE YEARS

Published January 30, 2018

FNC Remains Number One in Total Day in All of Basic Cable for 19 Consecutive Months 

FOX News Channel (FNC) marked a monumental milestone, making history as the most-watched cable news channel for the sixteenth consecutive year, according to Nielsen Media Research. For the month of January, FNC continued to dominate all of basic cable for the 19th consecutive month in total day, delivering 1.5 million in total viewers. Additionally, FNC also averaged 2.5 million in primetime total viewers, only ranking second behind sports-dominated ESPN.

Throughout total day and primetime, FNC continues to outpace CNN and MSNBC with P2+, Adults 25-54 and Adults 18-49. In primetime, FNC averaged 2,456,000 beating CNN’s 927,000 and MSNBC’s 1,862,000 in total viewers. With Adults 25-54, FNC garnered 476,000 topping CNN’s 329,000 and MSNBC’s 412,000.  In total day, FNC averaged 1,494,000 in total viewers, dominating CNN’s 713,000 and MSNBC’s 1,001,000.  In the 25-54 demo, FNC averaged 308,000 and ranked ahead of CNN with 237,000 and MSNBC with 224,000. Additionally, FNC leads all of cable news in primetime and total day in the younger 18-49 demo, averaging 298,000 and 200,000 viewers, respectively.

Kicking off FNC’s daytime programming, the 4AM/ET hour of FOX & Friends First hosted by Heather Childers has dominated its timeslot since its debut on 10/8/17, with an average of 532,000 in total viewers and 139,000 with A25-54. The 5AM/ET hour of FOX & Friends First had a total of 649K viewers and 172K with A25-54. Continuing to make cable news history, FNC’s signature morning show FOX & Friends marked 195 months as the number one cable news program in its timeslot with an average of 1.5 million in total viewers and 340,000 with the 25-54 demo.  At 9AM/ET, America’s Newsroom delivered 1.8 million in total viewers with P2+ and 326,000 with A25-54. FNC’s afternoon ensemble program at 12PM/ET, Outnumbered, garnered 1.7 million in total viewers and 328,000 in the 25-54 category. Outnumbered Overtime anchored by Harris Faulkner delivered 1.6 million in total viewers and 319,000 with A25-54 while The Daily Briefing with Dana Perino averaged 1.5 million in total viewers and 305,000 in the 25-54 demo.  During the 3PM/ET hour, FNC’s Shepard Smith Reporting averaged 1.5 million viewers with P2+ and 293,000 with A25-54. Your World with Neil Cavuto at 4PM/ET delivered 1.7 million viewers with P2+ and averaged 313,000 with A25-54.

During FNC’s early evening and primetime programming, The Five garnered 2.5 million in total viewers and 468,000 in the demo. Anchored by chief political anchor Bret Baier at 6PM/ET, Special Report averaged 2.5 million viewers with P2+ and 470,000 in the 25-54 demo. The Story with Martha MacCallum at 7PM/ET delivered 2.3 million in total viewers and 467,000 with A25-54. At 8PM/ET, Tucker Carlson Tonight garnered 3 million in total viewers and 597,000 in A25-54, outpacing The O’Reilly Factor’s average in the 25-54 demo (597K vs. 564K).  For the fourth consecutive month, Hannity was the most-watched cable news program, with 3.3 million in total viewers.  In the A25-54 demo, Hannity averaged 660,000. The Ingraham Angle, hosted by Laura Ingraham, averaged 2.6 million in total viewers and 504,000 with A25-54. Additionally, FOX News @ Night anchored by Shannon Bream garnered 1.5 million in total viewers and 351,000 with A25-54. FNC programs also notched three of the top six most-watched programs in the younger 18-49 category.

RATINGS FOR THE TOP 5 PROGRAMS IN CABLE NEWS FOR JANUARY 2018:

Total Viewers: Hannity (3,269,000), Rachel Maddow Show (3,033,000), Tucker Carlson Tonight (2,982,000), The Ingraham Angle (2,576,000), The Five (2,545,000)

Adults 25-54: Rachel Maddow Show (678,000), Hannity (660,000), Tucker Carlson Tonight (597,000), Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell (518,000), The Ingraham Angle (504,000)

JANUARY 2018 VS. JANUARY 2017 NIELSEN NUMBERS (7-day week, L+SD):

**Please note, January 2017 news coverage included coverage surrounding President Donald Trump’s Inauguration.

TOTAL DAY:

FNC: 1,494,000 total viewers – down 17% (308,000 in 25-54 – down 17%)

CNN: 713,000 total viewers – down 10% (237,000 in 25-54 – down 4%)

MSNBC: 1,001,000 total viewers – up 55% (224,000 in 25-54 – up 45%)

PRIMETIME: 8-11PM/ET:

FNC: 2,456,000 total viewers – down 14% (476,000 in 25-54 – down 16%)

CNN: 927,000 total viewers – down 20% (329,000 in 25-54 – down 15%)

MSNBC: 1,862,000 total viewers – up 61% (412,000 in 25-54 – up 51%)

FOX News Channel (FNC) is a 24-hour all-encompassing news service dedicated to delivering breaking news as well as political and business news. The number one network in cable, FNC has been the most watched television news channel for 16 years and according to a Gallup/Knight Foundation Survey, is the most the most objective information source in the country. Owned by 21st Century Fox, FNC is available in more than 90 million homes and dominates the cable news landscape, routinely notching the top ten programs in the genre.

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FOX News Media Contacts:

Carly Shanahan/ 212.301.3851

Jaclyn Giuliano/212.301.3436

 

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