Fox News maintained its lead in cable news ratings during October, dominating both primetime and total day viewership. The Five remained the top-rated program, while MS NOW and CNN competed behind Fox News.
What We Know: Fox News claimed the top six programs across all of cable during October, reinforcing its position as the leading cable news network. MS NOW‘s The Rachel Maddow Show finished seventh overall, making it the highest-rated program outside Fox. Meanwhile, CNN’s top-rated program, The Source with Kaitlan Collins, placed 27th.
What the Numbers Show:
Total Primetime Viewership
| Network | Viewership |
|---|---|
| Fox News | 1.7 million |
| MS NOW | 925K |
| CNN | 598K |
| Newsmax | 195K |
| NewsNation | 107K |
Total Day Viewership
| Network | Viewership |
|---|---|
| Fox News | 1.1 million |
| MS NOW | 588K |
| CNN | 402K |
| Newsmax | 120K |
| NewsNation | 54K |
P25-54 Primetime Viewership
| Network | Viewership |
|---|---|
| Fox News | 145K |
| MS NOW | 95K |
| CNN | 107K |
| Newsmax | 8K |
| NewsNation | 13K |
P25-54 Total Day Viewership
| Network | Viewership |
|---|---|
| Fox News | 98K |
| MS NOW | 62K |
| CNN | 60K |
| Newsmax | 6K |
| NewsNation | 6K |
What’s at Stake: Cable news ratings influence advertising revenue, network positioning, and programming decisions. Fox’s continued dominance gives the network a substantial advantage, while MS NOW and CNN remain focused on attracting viewers in the advertiser-coveted P25-54 demographic.
What It Means: Fox averaged 1.7 million primetime viewers, nearly twice MS NOW’s audience. However, CNN outperformed MS NOW among primetime viewers ages 25-54, averaging 107,000 compared with 95,000. The results highlight Fox News’ broad audience strength and the continued competition for younger viewers.
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