When looking at these networks’ performance during the same period a year ago:
- During primetime, Fox News was down -39% in total viewers and -49% in the A25-54 demo. During total day, the network was down -40% in total viewers and -48% in the demo.
- MS NOW was up +7% in total viewers and +16% in the demo. During total day, the network recorded gains of +12% in total viewers and +23% in the demo.
- In primetime, CNN fell by -3% in total viewers but grew by +1% in the demo. During total day, it was down -6% in total viewers and -9% in the demo.
PROGRAMMING:
Fox News held 12 of the 15 spots among the week’s most-watched cable news shows, with The Five on top with 2.772 million total viewers at 5 p.m. ET. MS NOW was represented in the chart by Monday’s 9 p.m. ET airing of The Rachel Maddow Show, with 1.483 million total viewers at No. 8. The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell, airing weeknights at 10 p.m. ET, had 1.195 million total viewers at No. 14. Meanwhile, The Briefing with Jen Psaki had 1.119 million total viewers in the No. 15 position, airing Tuesday to Friday at 9 p.m. ET.
The Five remained in the pole position in the Adults 25-54 demo, averaging 270,000 viewers. Fox News held 13 of the 15 top spots in the demo, with The Rachel Maddow Show averaging 130,000 viewers in 11th place and CNN’s CNN NewsNight with Abby Phillip, airing five nights a week at 10 p.m. ET, finishing with 117,000 viewers in 14th place.
September 14, 2026 (Nielsen Big Data + Panel):
Prime Time
| Fox News | MS NOW | CNN | |
| • Total Viewers: | 1,618,000 | 914,000 | 552,000 |
| • A25-54: | 147,000 | 81,000 | 88,000 |
Total Day
| Fox News | MS NOW | CNN | |
| • Total Viewers: | 1,064,000 | 568,000 | 375,000 |
| • A25-54: | 104,000 | 54,000 | 53,000 |
