Fox News Marks 30 Months As Top

Fox News Channel's new prime time lineup, featuring hosts Laura Ingraham, Jesse Watters, Sean ... [+] Hannity and Greg Gutfeld

Fox News Channel was the most-watched cable news network in August, taking the #1 spot in prime time among total viewers and in the key demo of adults 25-54, according to ratings data compiled by Nielsen. The monthly win marks 30 consecutive months that Fox has dominated the competition.

MSNBC’s The Rachel Maddow Show, which airs on Monday nights, delivered an average total audience of 3 million viewers and 339,000 viewers in the key demo, extending its top-rated run to four consecutive months. August represented Maddow’s most-watched month in more than two years—since March 2021. The show also posted year-over-year gains of 10% among total viewers and 16% in the key demo.

Rachel Maddow had the highest-rated hour in cable news last week.

The highest-rated show for the month (Monday through Friday) was Fox News Channel’s The Five, which delivered a total audience of 2.734 million viewers, followed by Jesse Watters Primetime (2.479 million viewers), and Hannity (2.388 million viewers)—all airing on FNC. MSNBC’s The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell was fourth overall and the highest-rated show outside of Fox, with an average total audience of 2.036 million viewers. FNC’s Gutfeld! rounded out the top five with 1.955 million viewers.

DALLAS, TX - FEBRUARY 22: Fox News host Greg Gutfeld speaks during Fox News Channel's "Gutfeld!" ... [+] Live In Dallas at Gilley's Dallas on February 22, 2022 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Omar Vega/Getty Images)

In the key demo—the ratings metric most valued by advertisers—Hannity was first overall with 289,000 viewers, followed by The Five (287,000 viewers), Gutfeld! (278,000 viewers), Jesse Watters Primetime (243,000 viewers) and MSNBC’s The Last Word (211,000 viewers). Fox’s new prime time lineup saw ratings growth, delivering double-digit gains among total viewers and in the key demo.

While Fox had 6 of the top ten and 9 of the top fifteen highest-rated shows in cable news for the month, MSNBC took the rest, with The Beat with Ari Melber finishing the month in 8th place overall (1.875 million viewers), Alex Wagner Tonight was 9th (1.771 million viewers), followed by All In with Chris Hayes (10th place, with 1.738 million viewers), Deadline: White House (11th place with 1.716 million viewers), and The Reidout (12th place with 1.510 million viewers).

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 17: Kaitlan Collins and Anderson Cooper appear in a video during the Warner ... [+] Bros. Discovery Upfront 2023 at The Theater at Madison Square Garden on May 17, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images)

CNN’s highest-rated show for the month was Anderson Cooper 360, which finished in 26the place overall and delivered an average total audience of 907,000 viewers. CNN’s Erin Burnett OutFront was 28th with 850,000 viewers and The Source with Kaitlan Collins just made the top 30 with an average total audience of 802,000 viewers.

In the key demo, Anderson Cooper 360 jumped into the top ten at #9 with an average audience of 186,000 viewers, with Erin Burnett OutFront taking 14th (174,000 viewers) and The Source with Kaitlan Collins finishing the month tied for 14th with 174,000 viewers.

In the demo, MSNBC and Fox News both had five of the top ten highest-rated shows, as FNC’s The Ingraham Angle and MSNBC’s The Reidout tied for 10th place overall with an average audience of 183,000 viewers.