During his presidency, President Joe Biden has rarely offered to join a one-on-one sit-down interview with a member of the national media. But in this election year amidst inflation in the economy and a tumultuous time overseas in Israel and Gaza, his recent interviews have become noteworthy, including one earlier this month with CNN’s Erin Burnett.
In late April, SiruusXM’s Howard Stern scored his first-ever interview with a sitting President when Biden joined him for a lengthy discussion about his life as well as current events.
On Wednesday, May 8th, Biden then spoke with Burnett in Wisconsin during his trip there to help plan an increase in manufacturing and technology jobs in the Midwest. Currently, multiple national and swing-state polls show Biden trailing Donald Trump.
During the exclusive interview on Erin Burnett OutFront. President Biden said for the first time that if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered a major invasion of the city of Rafah, he would halt some shipments of American weapons like 2,000-pound bombs to the country. “Civilians have been killed in Gaza as a consequence of those bombs and other ways in which they go after population centers,” Biden told Burnett.
According to Nielsen Media Research’s live plus same-day data, the 7-8 PM. OutFront hour delivered 786,000 viewers including 127,000 within the key 25-54 demographic. Based on recent results, this was significantly above the show’s average viewership. For weeknights from Mar. 3-29, it averaged 675,000 viewers; for Apr. 1-26, the show’s average was 715,000 viewers.
Demo-wise, OutFront was relatively on par with its March (130,000) and April (120,000) results.
Of the 42 daily editions of Erin Burnett OutFront (since Mar. 3) prior to Biden’s appearance, only five of them had drawn more than the May 8th edition, with each of them boosted due to the big news events of those respective days:
- Tuesday, Mar. 26 (Baltimore bridge collapse): 915,000 viewers; 213,000 adults 25-54
- Monday, Apr. 22 (Trump hush money trial/campus encampments and protests): 921,000 viewers; 162,000 adults 25-54
- Tuesday, Apr. 23 (Trump hush money trial/campus encampments and protests): 919,000 viewers; 148,000 adults 25-54
- Tuesday, Apr. 30 (Trump hush money trial/campus encampments and protests): 801,000 viewers; 120,000 adults 25-54
- Thursday, May 2 (Trump hush money trial/campus encampments and protests): 841,000 viewers; 145,000 adults 25-54
Nonetheless, on May 8, CNN’s Erin Burnett OutFront still trailed in total viewers to its direct competition in the 7-8 p.m. hour, Fox News’ The Ingraham Angle (2.079 million) and MSNBC’s The Reidout (1.12 million). While Ingraham (161,000) also led cable news within that hour among adults 25-54, OutFront (127,000) did best Reidout (120,000) within the demo.
Burnett’s interview with President Biden re-aired twice in the overnight of May 8/early morning of May 9: at 1 a.m. (231,000 viewers / 59,000 adults 25-54) and at 4 a.m. (142,000 viewers / 34,000 adults 25-54).
