“Tucker Carlson Tonight” Ranked as the Top-Rated Cable News Show Yesterday
Program Made Up 72% of the Cable News Share with Total Viewers and 25-54 Demo in the 8 PM/ET Hour
FOX News Channel’s (FNC) Tucker Carlson Tonight (weekdays, 8 PM/ET) secured its second-highest rated show of 2021 on Monday night with 5,050,000 viewers 913,000 with A25-54, according to Nielsen Media Research. The program was also the top-rated show in cable news yesterday in both measurements. Notably, Tucker Carlson Tonight topped CNN by 538% and 373% in the 24-54 demo in the 8 PM/ET hour. Additionally, Tucker Carlson Tonight outpaced CNN and MSNBC combined by more than double during the hour. The show is up versus all comparisons – up double-digits compared to 4Q’2021, the current month of November and the most recent full month of October. In fact, Tucker Carlson Tonight was up 56% in total viewers and up 72% in the key 25-54 demo versus the fourth quarter. The show was the number one non-sports cable telecast last night, and also defeated ABC’s The Good Doctor and CBS’ Rudolph. From 8-11 PM/ET in primetime, FNC also delivered 3,530,000 viewers and 625,000 with A25-54, outpacing both CNN and MSNBC across the board.
Carlson conducted the first interview with Kyle Rittenhouse following his acquittal on Friday for shooting three men in Kenosha, Wisconsin last August. During the interview, Rittenhouse told Tucker Carlson Tonight, “I’m not a racist person. I support the BLM movement. I support peacefully demonstrating. I believe there needs to be change. I believe there’s a lot of prosecutorial misconduct, not just in my case but in other cases. It’s just amazing to see how much a prosecutor can take advantage of someone.” Rittenhouse also commented on President Joe Biden calling him a white supremacist by saying, “Mr. President, if I would say one thing to you, I would urge you to go back and watch the trial and understand the facts before you make a statement.”
FOX News Channel (FNC) is a 24-hour all-encompassing news service delivering breaking news as well as political and business news. The number one network in cable, FNC has been the most watched television news channel for nearly 20 consecutive years. According to a 2021 Brand Keys Customer Loyalty Engagement Index report, FOX News leads the news industry in both brand loyalty, engagement and expectations. A 2019 Suffolk University poll also named FOX News as the most trusted source for television news or commentary, while a 2019 Brand Keys Emotion Engagement Analysis survey found that FOX News was the most trusted cable news brand. Owned by FOX Corp, FNC is available in 80 million homes and dominates the cable news landscape, routinely notching the top ten programs in the genre.
**According to Nielsen Media Research
| 8-9 PM/ET | ||
| Network | P2+ AA | A25-54 AA |
| FNC | 5,050,000 | 913,000 |
| CNN | 792,000 | 193,000 |
| MSNBC | 1,195,000 | 159,000 |
| 8-11 PM/ET | ||
| Network | P2+ AA | A25-54 AA |
| FNC | 3,530,000 | 625,000 |
| CNN | 740,000 | 159,000 |
| MSNBC | 1,518,000 | 197,000 |
Comparisons
| TUCKER CARLSON TONIGHT | P 2+ | P 25-54 | |||||
| AA | AA | ||||||
| Period | Time | Days | (000s) | % | (000s) | % | |
| 22-Nov | Tucker-Rittenhouse | 08:00P -09:00P | M______ | 5050 | 913 | ||
| !09/27/21-11/21/21 | 4Q-21td | 08:00P -09:00P | MTWTF__ | 3242 | 56% | 532 | 72% |
| !11/01/21-11/21/21 | Nov-21td | 08:00P -09:00P | MTWTF__ | 3541 | 43% | 625 | 46% |
| 09/27/21-10/31/21 | 21-Oct | 08:00P -09:00P | MTWTF__ | 3063 | 65% | 476 | 92% |
| !12/28/20-11/21/21 | YTD | 08:00P -09:00P | MTWTF__ | 3162 | 60% | 524 | 74% |
