The mainstream media, print and broadcast, has largely ignored the fact that FOX News recently achieved an unprecedented milestone in the 75 year history of U.S. commercial television.
FOX News not only has more viewers now than the other two mainstream cable news channels combined (Trump Derangement Syndrome channels CNN and MSNBC), but also for the first time is outranking the three major legacy commercial broadcast networks that also suffer from TDS (ABC, CBS, and NBC).
As FOX News Media announced in a news release on July 15:
During the week of July 7–13, FOX News Channel (FNC) averaged 2.4 million viewers in prime time leading all broadcast networks for the third consecutive week including NBC (2.2 million viewers), CBS (2 million viewers) and ABC (2 million viewers). Since Memorial Day, FNC has commanded 3 million viewers in weekday prime time, which also leads all of television including ABC (2.9 million viewers), NBC (2.4 million viewers) and CBS (2.1 million viewers). FNC is outpacing the broadcast competition in weekday prime time since the official start of the Summer on June 20.
This striking development comes within the context of the audience for traditional broadcast and cable television having declined to its smallest percentage of people watching video in the history of the U.S. television medium.
On July 15, 2025 The Hollywood Reporter reported:
For the first time since Nielsen began tracking TV use by platform four years ago — and probably the first time ever, considering broadcast’s dominant place for much of television history — over-the-air networks accounted for less than 20 percent of viewing in June. The ratings service’s monthly Gauge rankings show broadcast at 18.5 percent for the month, down from 20.1 percent in May.
A pie chart in the Hollywood Reporter article confirms that 18.5% of Americans watch broadcast T.V., 23.4% watch cable, while 46% rely on streaming.
The question is: What do the reports of FOX News’s success – as the only conservative outlier in the vast mainstream media landscape – possibly suggest about the future of MAGA?
Lara Trump interviews her father-in-law, President Donald Trump in the White House
Screenshot from My View with Lara Trump FOX News July 13, 2025 // by permission
It’s been said before that nothing succeeds like success. I would argue that the success of FOX News says a lot that is encouraging to conservatives in general and MAGA adherents in particular.
FOX News, which is enjoying its greatest success in its 29 year history, is the only conservative channel among all the rest of the MSM that gives balanced and fair reporting to Trump 2.0. Its weekday prime time schedule is almost totally pro-Trump: Laura Ingraham at 7:00 p.m. ET, Jesse Watters at 8:00 p.m., Sean Hannity at 9:00 p.m., and Greg Gutfeld at 10. These four programs are all repeated starting early the following day at 1:00 a.m. ET.
On the weekends, Mark Levin is on during prime time on Saturday and Sunday with his appointment viewing interview programs featuring thought leader conservative guests. Also on the weekends is Donald Trump’s daughter-in-law Lara Trump at 9:00 p.m. on Saturday. Other programs that tilt conservative on the weekends are Brian Kilmeade’s at 10:00 p.m. Sunday, Trey Gowdy’s at 9:00 p.m. Sunday, and comedian Jimmy Failla’s at 10:00 p.m. Saturday.
FOX News is the mainstream T.V. channel where President Trump, and other Trump administration officials, go to be interviewed. During the past seven days (July 10 to 16), FOX News and the FOX Business Network have presented interviews with the following:
Sen. Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), Donald Trump's granddaughter Kai Trump, White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Speaker of the House Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.), President Donald Trump (interviewed by Lara Trump), Border Czar Tom Homan, and President Trump on The Will Cain Show.
This is not a complete list – merely the guests whose interviews were transcribed and emailed to journalists by FOX News Media. FOX News also regularly invites scores of journalists and analysts who support President Trump’s agenda and policies – a case in point, Charlie Kirk on One Nation with Brian Kilmeade last Sunday.
Screenshot of Charlie Kirk on One Nation with Brian Kilmeade, FOX News July 13, 2025 // Used by permission.
During Donald Trump’s first administration, the cable news ratings seesawed, although FOX News was usually on top. There were several points, however, when MSNBC and CNN came close to toppling FOX News’s lead – for instance, in the aftermath of the 2020 elections and the Jan. 6, 2021 U.S. Capitol “insurrection,” as the left wing media liked to call it.
There was also a rough period during the summer of 2017 following the firing of primetime host Bill O’Reilly. FOX News soon righted the ship, however, and was back in the lead.
More than four years now after President Biden’s first year in office, ratings for left wing channels MSNBC and especially CNN have cratered.
MSNBC will soon lose its 29 year long affiliation with NBC News and will need to completely reconfigure itself. It may even have to change its name.
CNN is hopelessly mired in third place, thanks to second-rate, TDS programming that – although it allows conservatives like Scott Jennings and a few others to appear, and be ganged up on, during its primetime chat shows – has become almost totally unwatchable.
As someone who monitors all of cable news (someone has to do it), it’s clear that whatever limitations FOX News might have, it is head and shoulders above the cable news competition. Meanwhile, FOX has also developed a significant streaming presence with its subscription FOX Nation service that debuted in 2018, featuring new documentaries and a wide variety of original programs.
For its part, CNN’s highly promoted online effort CNN+ that launched in March 2022 quickly failed and was pulled after only one month. (CNN is promoting a new streaming service it promises to launch this fall.) MSNBC does not have a dedicated streaming channel, although it is heavily advertising podcasts by many of its hosts.
FOX News is now promoting itself with the tagline “America is Watching™.” And so, within the context and limitations of wired TV, it seems to be.
Peter Barry Chowka is a veteran reporter and a long time contributor to American Thinker. His Web page is peter.media. His X/Twitter is @pchowka. Peter is a regular contributor – and one of the few conservatives – on the BBC radio and television, the largest broadcaster in the world. His YouTube channel where recordings of many of his BBC appearances can be accessed is youtube.com/@petercmedia.