Fox News continued to dominate ratings in April, while its coverage of Donald Trump’s hush money trial failed to produce blockbuster viewership.
In fact, all major cable news networks saw declines in the key 25-54 demo compared to last year.
The networks are challenged by the fact that television coverage of the Trump trial is banned in the courtroom, leaving correspondents to read regular reports alongside a number of legal analysts. CNN and MSNBC have added scrolls to the side of their screens with real-time text updates from the courthouse.
In prime time, Fox News led the way with an average of 1.98 million viewers, down 5% from 2023, compared to MSNBC with 1.25 million, down 5%, and CNN with 624,000, up 6% . In the 25-54 demo, Fox News averaged 219,000, down 9%, compared to MSNBC at 114,000, down 3%, and CNN at 113,000, down 16%.
For the full day, Fox News averaged 1.27 million, down 2%, compared to MSNBC at 864,000, up 5%, and CNN at 505,000, up 5%. In the 25-54 demo, Fox News averaged 156,000, down 3%, compared to CNN at 88,000, down 13%, and MSNBC at 88,000, down 14%.
Fox News’ The five was the most watched program with an average of 3.03 million viewers, followed by Jesse Watters Primetime with 2.57 million, Hannity with 2.22 million, Gutfeld! with 2.08 million and Special report with 2.06 million.
In the 25-54 demo Gutfeld! topped with an average of 295,000, followed by The five with 262,000, Jesse Watters Primetime with 244,000, Hannity with 240,000 and The Ingraham Angle with 198,000.
Weekly participation is not included in the rankings The Rachel Maddow Showwhich averaged 2.5 million viewers this year, surpassing its time slot.
In the first week of the Trump trial, starting with opening arguments, Fox News averaged 1.93 million in prime time, compared to 1.44 million for MSNBC and 772,000 for CNN. For the full day, Fox News averaged 1.27 million, compared to 980,000 for MSNBC and 582,000 for CNN.
Viewership data comes from Nielsen across Fox News, MSNBC and CNN.
CNN led the way with its coverage of the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner Saturday night, averaging 1.37 million, compared to 1.13 million for Fox News and 979,000 for MSNBC. In the 25-54 demo, CNN averaged 185,000, compared to 111,000 for Fox News and 81,000 for MSNBC.