FOX News Channel crushes MSNBC, CNN in third quarter as ‘The Five’ makes history

FOX News Channel finished the third quarter of 2023 as the most-watched cable network among both total day and primetime viewers, crushing MSNBC and CNN for the 10th straight quarter in the process. 

FOX News averaged 1.1 million total day viewers compared to 813,000 for MSNBC and only 471,000 for embattled CNN. When it comes to the advertising-coveted demographic of adults age 25-54, FOX News averaged 132,000 compared to 88,000 apiece for CNN and MSNBC. 

“The Five,” co-hosted by Dana Perino, Greg Gutfeld, Jesse Watters and Jeanine Pirro, averaged 2.7 million viewers to finish as the No. 1 cable news program. “The Five” continued to shatter records, becoming the first non-primetime program in cable news history to finish with the largest audience for eight consecutive quarters. 

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“The Five” became the first non-primetime program in cable news history to finish with the largest audience for eight consecutive quarters.  (FOX)

“The Five” also finished No. 1 among the key demo, averaging 273,000 viewers among the critical category. 

FOX News’ revamped primetime lineup averaged 1.7 million total viewers, while MSNBC managed 1.3 million and CNN averaged a dismal 596,000. FOX News was the only news network to post gains across the board in primetime versus the prior quarter. In the demo, FOX News averaged 192,000 viewers during primetime compared to 129,000 for MSNBC and 119,000 for CNN. 

“The Ingraham Angle” averaged 1.9 million viewers as Laura Ingraham remains the most-watched solo female host in cable news. “Jesse Watters Primetime” averaged 2.4 million viewers to crush timeslot competition and grow the 8 p.m. ET hour audience by 13% compared to last quarter as he finished with the No. 1 primetime program. 

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Fox News Channel primetime hosts Laura Ingraham, Jesse Watters, Sean Hannity, and Greg Gutfeld. (Fox News)

“Hannity” remained dominant at 9 p.m. ET with an average audience of 2.2 million, while “Gutfeld!” finished as the most-watched show among the key demo with 1.9 million total viewers and 267,000 in between ages 25-54. 

“FOX News @ Night” averaged nearly one-million viewers at 11 p.m. ET to crush cable news competition.

“FOX & Friends” finished the quarter with over one-million viewers to crush “CNN This Morning” and MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” across the board. “FOX & Friends” has been No. 1 among cable news morning shows among both total viewers and the demo for more than two straight years. 

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FOX News Channel finished the third quarter of 2023 as the most-watched cable network among both total day and primetime viewers, crushing MSNBC and CNN for the 10th straight quarter in the process.  (Fox News)

“America’s Newsroom” with Bill Hemmer and Dana Perino, “The Faulkner Focus,” “Outnumbered,” “America Reports” with John Roberts and Sandra Smith,” Martha MacCallum’s “The Story” and “Your World with Neil Cavuto” all had strong quarters for FOX News’ daytime lineup, too. 

FOX News Channel topped CNN and MSNBC combined during the weekends, with “FOX & Friends Weekend” finishing as the most-watched Saturday show and “Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo” taking the Sunday crown. 

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During its disastrous quarter, CNN posted its smallest audience in the demo among both total day and primetime in recorded history. The most-watched show on struggling CNN was “Anderson Cooper 360,” which finished No. 27 overall with only 757,000 average viewers. Despite being CNN’s top program, “AC 360” lost to 14 FOX News programs and 12 MSNBC offerings. 

All data courtesy of Nielsen Media Research. 

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