This is TVNewser’s basic cable network ranker and cable news report for the week of January 26, 2026.
The fallout from the death of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the continued unrest stemming from ICE’s presence within that state, and the severe winter weather affecting the country led to an increase in viewership at news networks.
Fox News and MS NOW saw double-digit growth across the board, with MS NOW seeing an over 60% jump in the primetime demo.
On Monday, MS NOW’s The Rachel Maddow Show was the No. 1 program in the 9 p.m. ET hour in total viewers and the Adults 25-54 demo, surpassing Fox News’ Hannity. Maddow had 2.668 million total viewers, vs. Hannity’s 2.654 million. In the demo, MS NOW’s show had 345,000 viewers vs. 244,000 on Fox News.
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According to Nielsen big data + panel for the week of January 26, Fox News averaged 2.565 million total viewers and 245,000 A25-54 viewers during primetime. The network was up +16% in total viewers and +17% in the demo compared to the week prior (the week beginning January 19).
Fox News averaged 1.661 million total viewers and 160,000 A25-54 viewers in total day viewing. Based on its average for the previous week’s measurements, it was up +11% in total viewers and +10% in the demo.
Fox News ranked first in total primetime viewership and was the No. 2 network in demo viewership among all basic cable networks. In total day, it finished in first place in total viewers and was second in the total day demo.
MS NOW averaged 1.241 million total viewers and 151,000 viewers in the A25-54 demo for the week that just concluded. The network was up +17% in total viewers and +62% in the demo compared to its average the week prior during primetime.
During total day, MS NOW averaged 756,000 total viewers and 88,000 demo viewers. This translated to a +13% gain in total viewers and a +35% gain in the demo compared to the network’s average the week prior.
Among all basic cable networks, MS NOW was third in total primetime viewers and was No. 6 in the demo, tied with the Food Network. It ranked second in total viewers and seventh in the total day demo.
CNN averaged 832,000 total primetime viewers and 169,000 A25-54 viewers in the demo during primetime for the week of January 26. The network was up +22% in total viewers and +37% in the demo compared to the previous week.
In total day, the network had 590,000 total viewers and 105,000 viewers in the demo. CNN was up +10% in total viewers and +9% in the demo during this daypart.
Among all cable networks, CNN was in fourth place in total viewers and was No. 5 in the demo during primetime. It was fourth in total day among total viewers and fifth in the demo.
