Key Points
- Fox News Channel led cable news in July, averaging 2.33 million Monday-Sunday primetime viewers and nearly 1.5 million total-day viewers.
- NewsNation reported the strongest year-over-year primetime growth among cable news networks in July among Adults 25-54.
- CNN posted a 26 percent year-over gain among total viewers across the top 10 cable networks and delivered strong multi-platform reach around its Fourth of July coverage.
- MS NOW reported its eighth consecutive month of year-over growth and averaged 1.3 million weekday primetime viewers.
Cable news outlets saw some audience gains during July as Americans tuned in to watch coverage of the country’s semi-quincenetnnial celebrations, key Supreme Court decisions and ongoing political developments headed into the 2026 midterm elections.
Fox News Channel remained the dominant cable news network by total audience, averaging 2.33 million viewers in Monday-Sunday primetime and nearly 1.5 million viewers across total day, according to Nielsen ratings data cited by the network. Fox News also led weekday broadcast networks in primetime during July, averaging 2.64 million viewers compared with 2.45 million viewers for NBC, 2.27 million viewers for ABC and 1.92 million viewers for CBS.
“The Five” remained the highest-rated show in cable news with 3.3 million viewers, followed by “Jesse Watters Primetime” with nearly 3 million viewers, “Gutfeld!” with 2.63 million, “Hannity” with 2.55 million and “Special Report with Bret Baier” with 2.52 million.
Fox News’ coverage of America 250 celebrations the network’s highest-rated Fourth of July in history, averaging 3.5 million primetime viewers and peaking at 5.7 million viewers during President Donald Trump’s late-night speech.
Nexstar-owned NewsNation continued to focus on its growth strategy, notching year-over gains in prime-time among cable news viewers between the ages of 25 and 54 years old (P25-54). Nielsen data showed NewsNation’s primetime viewership rose 32 percent from July 2025, while total-day audience increased 24 percent.
“Cuomo” remained NewsNation’s highest-rated program overall with a nightly audience of 230,000 viewers, up 29 percent overall and 41 percent among P25-54 viewers. “On Balance with Leland Vittert” rose 45 percent in total viewers, while “Jesse Weber Live” increased 46 percent from the same period last year.
CNN said it outperformed typical summer trends, when overall TV viewership is at its lowest. The network posted its strongest year-over audience growth among total viewers across the top 10 cable networks with a 26 percent increase, according to Nielsen data.
CNN said it ranked among the top five cable networks in total day for the 19th consecutive month among total viewers and remained in the top 10 among P25-54 viewers for the seventh consecutive month.
CNN’s “Fourth in America: Celebrating 250” reached 26.39 million people worldwide across platforms, while “Independence Day Eve with Anderson and Andy” reached 13.24 million. The network also reported live video starts up 65 percent year over year and live viewers up 25 percent.
Versant’s MS NOW (formerly MSNBC) said July marked its eighth consecutive month of year-over growth: The network averaged 1.3 million weekday primetime viewers and 110,000 viewers in the P25-54 group, up 19 percent and 26 percent, respectively.
MS NOW also reported continued digital gains, with 3.2 billion combined YouTube and TikTok views year to date and more than 11 million audio downloads in July.
Viewership data for Newsmax, One America News and other cable outlets was not immediately available.
