In the competitive landscape of cable news, a seismic shift was felt on Friday night as Newsmax outpaced CNN in primetime viewership for the first time.
According to Forbes, Newsmax pulled in an average of 357,000 viewers during prime hours, edging out CNN, which attracted 335,000 viewers. Fox News remained the dominant player, attracting 1.4 million viewers, with MSNBC following at a distant second with an average of 1,084,000 viewers.
Despite CNN’s slip in overall viewership, it was able to hold onto its lead in the critical 25-54 demographic, with an average of 87,000 viewers, compared to Newsmax’s 45,000. However, even in this demographic, Fox News held the top spot, drawing 109,000 viewers, with MSNBC closely behind at 98,000.
Related: The Real Reason Why Tucker Carlson Was Fired Has Been Revealed: Report
The 8 p.m. time slot highlighted the shifting dynamics, with Newsmax’s “Eric Bolling The Balance” surpassing CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360” by 20,000 viewers. Bolling’s program attracted 467,000 viewers compared to Cooper’s 447,000.
The trend continued into the 9 p.m. hour, with Newsmax’s “Chris Plante The Right Squad” outperforming CNN’s “The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper.” Plante’s show drew an average of 325,000 viewers, compared to Cooper’s 293,000.
The competition remained stiff at 10 p.m., with Newsmax’s “Greg Kelly Reports” surpassing CNN’s “Who’s Talking to Chris Wallace” by 15,000 viewers, garnering 278,000 views to CNN’s 263,000.
These recent statistics underscore a challenging year for CNN, which faced its lowest viewership in history at the end of 2022. Over a 24-hour period, the network averaged just over half a million viewers, and barely surpassed 120,000 viewers in the key 25-54 demographic.
The landscape of cable news has been traditionally dominated by Fox News, which has consistently outperformed both CNN and MSNBC. In May 2022, both networks marked their lowest total viewership, with CNN averaging 511,000 daytime views and 545,000 in primetime, while MSNBC drew 753,000 daytime viewers and 1 million in primetime. In comparison, Fox News boasted an average total viewership of 1.72 million.
Interestingly, Newsmax’s surge coincided with the departure of Daily Caller co-founder Tucker Carlson from Fox News. His replacement program, “Fox News Tonight,” has seen a drop in both the key 25-54 demographic and overall viewership.
Related: Fox News Ratings Plunge After Tucker Carlson’s Exit
The recent ratings shift suggests an evolving landscape in the world of cable news.
Fox News continues to hold its position as the leading cable news network, but it has certainly taken a hit after the departure of Tucker Carlson, thus the rise of Newsmax. It is clear viewer preferences are far from static with maybe the exception of CNN.