Connect with us
Barrett News Media Summit 2024

News Television

Fox News Wins the Viewers Race For 20th Consecutive Week

Despite the holiday week, FNC remained relatively steady from its recent norms: 2.184 million viewers (including 340,000 within the key adults 25-54 demographic) in prime time; 1.231 million viewers (209,000 adults 25-54) in total day (6:00 a.m.-5:59 a.m.), according to Nielsen Media Research.

Doug Pucci

Published

on

For the 20th consecutive week, Fox News Channel was the highest-rated cable news network in both total day and primetime viewers. Despite the holiday week, FNC remained relatively steady from its recent norms: 2.184 million viewers (including 340,000 within the key adults 25-54 demographic) in prime time; 1.231 million viewers (209,000 adults 25-54) in total day (6:00 a.m.-5:59 a.m.), according to Nielsen Media Research.

The week’s top cable news telecast was the Wednesday, June 30th edition of FNC’s “Hannity”, which featured a town hall with Donald Trump and Texas Governor Greg Abbott. Averaging 3.54 million viewers, the event was also the week’s top non-sports telecast on all of cable. By its conclusion, news had broke that a Manhattan grand jury indicted the Trump Organization and its chief financial officer, Allen Weisselberg, on charges of tax crimes in connection with an array of perks and benefits awarded to employees.

Fox News’ “Tucker Carlson Tonight” remained the top cable news program, based on nightly average. For June 28-July 2, it averaged 3.1 million viewers and 515,000 in the 25-54 demo. It made news itself since June 28 with Carlson’s repeated claim that the National Security Agency spied on him and his TV show. The allegations spurred a rare public statement by the NSA, tweeting out on June 29 (at 8 p.m. ET, the regular start time of Carlson’s show), “Tucker Carlson has never been an intelligence target of the Agency and the NSA has never had any plans to try to take his program off the air.

CNN was the week’s definitive cable news runner-up in adults 25-54, buoyed by their “4th in America” special on Sunday, July 4 — a successful attempt at being the cable destination on a holiday night, mimicking their New Year’s Eve success. Among the night’s performers included The Beach Boys with John Stamos, Bebe Rexha, Billy Ray Cyrus, Nelly, Trisha Yearwood, The Harlem Gospel Choir, and “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band. The viewer track of the all-night, coast-to-coast celebration was, as follows:

  • 7:00-8:00 p.m. ET: 1.134 million viewers; 237,000 adults 25-54
  • 8:00-9:00 p.m. ET: 1.319 million viewers; 309,000 adults 25-54
  • 9:00-10:00 p.m. ET: 1.757 million viewers; 389,000 adults 25-54
  • 10:00-11:00 p.m. ET: 1.505 million viewers; 350,000 adults 25-54
  • 11:00 p.m.-midnight ET: 1.095 million viewers; 268,000 adults 25-54
  • midnight-1:00 a.m. ET: 0.775 million viewers; 171,000 adults 25-54
  • 1:00-2:00 a.m. ET: 0.510 million viewers; 114,000 adults 25-54
  • 2:00-3:00 a.m. ET: 0.353 million viewers; 82,000 adults 25-54

Fox News aired its own two-hour Independence Day special from 8-10 p.m. and drew modest figures: 1.241 million total viewers and 167,000 adults 25-54. Preceding the special, at 7 p.m., was “Sunday Night in America with Trey Gowdy” which topped CNN in total viewers and more than tripled MSNBC in both categories within the 7-8 p.m. hour, drawing an audience of 1.194 million viewers and 138,000 in the 25-54 demo.

Here are the cable news averages for June 28-July 4, 2021 — cable’s best mark for the week in total viewers based on total day was by Fox News Channel; the 20th consecutive week FNC has accomplished this feat.

Total Day (June 28-July 4 @ 6 a.m.-5:59 a.m.)

  • Fox News Channel: 1.231 million viewers; 209,000 adults 25-54 
  • MSNBC: 0.851 million viewers; 112,000 adults 25-54
  • CNN: 0.683 million viewers; 147,000 adults 25-54

Prime Time (June 28-July 3 @ 8-11 p.m.; July 4 @ 7-11 p.m.)

  • Fox News Channel: 2.184 million viewers; 340,000 adults 25-54
  • MSNBC: 1.404 million viewers; 180,000 adults 25-54
  • CNN: 0.982 million viewers; 227,000 adults 25-54

Top 10 most-watched cable news programs (and the top CNN program with their respective associated rank) in total viewers:

1. Hannity (FOXNC, Wed. 6/30/2021 9:00 PM, 60 min.) 3.537 million viewers

2. Tucker Carlson Tonight (FOXNC, Wed. 6/30/2021 8:00 PM, 60 min.) 3.133 million viewers

3. Tucker Carlson Tonight (FOXNC, Mon. 6/28/2021 8:00 PM, 60 min.) 3.098 million viewers

4. Tucker Carlson Tonight (FOXNC, Tue. 6/29/2021 8:00 PM, 60 min.) 3.025 million viewers

5. Tucker Carlson Tonight (FOXNC, Thu. 7/1/2021 8:00 PM, 60 min.) 2.966 million viewers

6. Rachel Maddow Show (MSNBC, Thu. 7/1/2021 9:00 PM, 60 min.) 2.814 million viewers

7. Tucker Carlson Tonight (FOXNC, Fri. 7/2/2021 8:00 PM, 60 min.) 2.778 million viewers

8. The Five (FOXNC, Wed. 6/30/2021 5:00 PM, 60 min.) 2.715 million viewers

9. Hannity (FOXNC, Mon. 6/28/2021 9:00 PM, 60 min.) 2.707 million viewers

10. Hannity (FOXNC, Thu. 7/1/2021 9:00 PM, 60 min.) 2.693 million viewers

35. CNN’s 4th In America “2021” (CNN, Sun. 7/4/2021 9:00 PM, 60 min.) 1.757 million viewers

Top 10 cable news programs (and the top CNN and HLN programs with their respective associated ranks) among adults 25-54:

1. Hannity (FOXNC, Wed. 6/30/2021 9:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.550 million adults 25-54

2. Tucker Carlson Tonight (FOXNC, Tue. 6/29/2021 8:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.528 million adults 25-54

3. Tucker Carlson Tonight (FOXNC, Mon. 6/28/2021 8:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.523 million adults 25-54

4. Tucker Carlson Tonight (FOXNC, Wed. 6/30/2021 8:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.512 million adults 25-54

5. Tucker Carlson Tonight (FOXNC, Thu. 7/1/2021 8:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.496 million adults 25-54

6. The Ingraham Angle (FOXNC, Wed. 6/30/2021 10:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.434 million adults 25-54

7. Hannity (FOXNC, Thu. 7/1/2021 9:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.403 million adults 25-54

8. Rachel Maddow Show (MSNBC, Wed. 6/30/2021 9:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.400 million adults 25-54

9. The Five (FOXNC, Wed. 6/30/2021 5:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.398 million adults 25-54

10. Hannity (FOXNC, Tue. 6/29/2021 9:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.396 million adults 25-54

11. CNN’s 4th In America “2021” (CNN, Sun. 7/4/2021 9:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.389 million adults 25-54

181. Forensic Files “True Lies” (HLN, Mon. 6/28/2021 12:00 AM, 30 min.) 0.169 million adults 25-54

Source: Live+Same Day data, Nielsen Media Research

Subscribe To The BNM Rundown

The Top 8 News Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox every afternoon!

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

News Television

Joe Scarborough: I Was a Conservative When Women at Fox News ‘Were Still Playing With Their Barbies’

“I’ve got a 95% (American Conservative Union) rating. I’m more conservative than any of them.”

Barrett News Media

Published

on

A photo of Joe Scarborough
(Photo: MSNBC)

MSNBC Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough spent time in Congress as a Republican. Despite his current position on a liberal cable news network, he argues he’s still a conservative and has been one since before his detractors on Fox News knew what the word means.

On Thursday morning, Scarborough called the Fox News hosts criticizing him for his role in the removal of former RNC chair Ronna McDaniel from NBC News “little idiots,” adding that he’s not a “left-winger.”

 “First of all, I’ve got a 95% (American Conservative Union) rating. I’m more conservative than any of them. I was part of Congress, and a big part of the reason if anybody was around, they’ll tell you that we balanced the budget for four years in a row for the first time, and the only time in 100 years,” the former Republican Congressman said.

He continued by adding that Liz Cheney, who also has a similar rating from the conservative think-tank was chastised for her failure to support former President Donald Trump.

While speaking with George Conway, Scarborough took a shot at the females from Fox News — without naming names — who have been critical of him in recent days.

“George, you and I were conservatives — and are conservatives — but we were conservatives when some of these women on Fox News who call us liberals were still playing with their Barbies,” Scarborough said confidently.

Subscribe To The BNM Rundown

The Top 8 News Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox every afternoon!

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Continue Reading

News Television

NBC News Chair Cesar Conde: I Made Decision to Sever Ties With Ronna McDaniel

“I want to personally apologize to our team members who felt we let them down. While this was a collective recommendation by some members of our leadership team, I approved it and take full responsibility for it.”

Barrett News Media

Published

on

A photo of Cesar Conde
(Photo: Jeffery Salter/ Fortune)

On Tuesday, NBC News ended its relationship with former RNC chair Ronna McDaniel after just five days due to intense internal backlash over the hire. The network’s News chairman, Cesar Conde, is taking responsibility.

In a memo sent to employees Tuesday, Conde says he approved McDaniel’s hiring, and ultimately made the decision to remove her from the outlet’s list of contributors.

“After listening to the legitimate concerns of many of you, I have decided that Ronna McDaniel will not be an NBC News contributor. No organization, particularly a newsroom, can succeed unless it is cohesive and aligned. Over the last few days, it has become clear that this appointment undermines that goal,” Conde wrote. “I want to personally apologize to our team members who felt we let them down. While this was a collective recommendation by some members of our leadership team, I approved it and take full responsibility for it.”

McDaniel — who has also been dropped by the CAA talent agency — has reportedly been seeking legal representation to explore potential breach of contract litigation with the network.

NBC News announced the hiring of the former Republican leader on Friday, which led to scrutiny from staffers angered by McDaniel’s previous comments about the press and her role in attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 election.

However, in her first paid appearance for the network, she told Meet the Press‘ Kristen Welker that Donald Trump did not win the election in 2020, and that the process was not rigged against him. It was the first time she publicly admitted those sentiments. She inferred that she felt a duty to back the former President’s claims as RNC chair, and will have more freedom as a political analyst at NBC News.

“Now, I get to be a little bit more myself,” she told Welker, before being lambasted by former moderator Chuck Todd for her lack of credibility.

After the appearance, several MSNBC hosts — including Joe Scarborough, Mika Brzezinski, Nicolle Wallace, Rachel Maddow, and Lawrence O’Donnell — shared their extreme displeasure with the hiring, which ultimately led Cesar Conde to reverse course.

Subscribe To The BNM Rundown

The Top 8 News Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox every afternoon!

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Continue Reading

News Television

NBC News to Drop Ronna McDaniel After Backlash From Network Staffers

Ronna McDaniel is reportedly “seeking legal representation” should NBC News attempt to exit its contract that reportedly was set to pay her $300,000.

Barrett News Media

Published

on

A photo of Ronna McDaniel

NBC News has made plans to sever its ties to political analyst Ronna McDaniel after near unanimous pushback from employees inside the outlet.

A report from Puck’s Dylan Byers claims the network is making preparations to end its short, but tumultuous, relationship with the former RNC chair.

On Friday, NBC News announced it had inked a deal for McDaniel to join the network as a political analyst.

Subsequently, MSNBC President Rashida Jones informed network staffers that the former Republican leader would not appear on the cable network after intense backlash from employees over past comments from McDaniel.

During her first appearance on Meet the Press Sunday, McDaniel admitted — for the first time — that the 2020 presidential election that was won by President Joe Biden was not “rigged” against former President Donald Trump, and shared her belief that Biden did in fact win the vote.

Former moderator Chuck Todd blasted the network for its decision to hire someone who had been involved in the “character assassination” of not only journalists and the media as a whole, but specific members of the staff at NBC News and MSNBC.

Todd’s comments were backed by those of Joe Scarborough, Mika Brzezinski, Nicolle Wallace, Jen Psaki, Rachel Maddow, and Lawrence O’Donnell who all shared their opinions about the situation on-air Monday.

According to the report from Byers, Ronna McDaniel is “seeking legal representation” should NBC News attempt to exit its contract that reportedly was set to pay her $300,000.

McDaniel joined NBC News after resigning her position as RNC chair, which she had previously held since 2017.

Subscribe To The BNM Rundown

The Top 8 News Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox every afternoon!

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Continue Reading
Advertisement

Advertisement
Advertisement

Upcoming Events

BNM Writers

Copyright © 2024 Barrett Media.