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Fox News Ratings Sink a Staggering 27% in October, but It Still Has Much a Larger Audience Than CNN or MS NOW
Fox News’ average total-day audience fell 27% in October to 1.1 million viewers, its lowest monthly figure since December 2023, according to preliminary Nielsen data. The decline comes ahead of the US midterm elections and stands out because CNN and MS NOW have recently recorded modest audience growth, although Fox remains the most-watched cable news network.
Fox averaged 98,000 viewers aged 25 to 54, down 32%; its October primetime audience was about 2 million, down 28% year on year. MS NOW’s daytime audience rose 16% to 588,000 and CNN’s increased 3% to 402,000. Fox’s representative pointed to its 3.8 billion YouTube views year to date through 27 October, ahead of MS NOW at 3 billion and CNN at 2.4 billion; Donald Trump has also criticised Fox for giving too much attention to Democratic views.
In short
- Fox News’ October total-day audience fell 27% to 1.1 million.
- CNN and MS NOW recorded modest audience gains.
- Fox says it remains ahead on YouTube views.
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The case for
The ratings drop is a meaningful sign that Fox may be losing some of its traditional television audience, especially as CNN and MS NOW grew modestly and Fox’s decline was steep across both daytime and primetime. Linear ratings remain a useful measure of how many people watch a channel’s broadcasts, so the figures could matter to advertisers and raise questions about Fox’s reach ahead of the midterms.
The case against
A single month’s Nielsen figures do not establish a lasting decline, and Fox still drew a larger cable-news audience than either rival. Its representative argues that YouTube views show substantial reach beyond television, suggesting that changing viewing habits may make linear ratings an incomplete measure of its audience.
Explained simply
Fox News, CNN and MS NOW are US television news networks that compete for viewers throughout the day and in the evening. Their audience figures are measured by Nielsen, which estimates how many people watch; advertisers use these figures when deciding where to place adverts.
The networks have different audiences and approaches, and their viewing figures can rise or fall with the news and the election cycle. Fox remains larger on television than its rivals, while each network also reaches people through online video and other platforms.
The figures matter because audience size can affect advertising revenue and influence how networks assess their programmes. They are one measure of reach, though they do not capture every way people get their news.
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