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CNN and MSNBC cannot catch a FOX

CNN and MSNBC cannot catch a FOX

FOX News remained the number one cable news network since … God knows when.  It has been years.  Not only has FOX remained king of the cable mountain, but according to a report in the New York Post, the Rupert Murdock network “trounced” the competition.  According to Nielsen Research Center, July was “the most viewed month ever.”

FOX was the most watched network during the month’s major events – including the assassination attempt on President Trump, the Republican National Convention and President Biden’s national address announcing his withdrawal from the campaign.

In primetime, FOX’s 3.5 million viewers – with 500,000 in the highly coveted 25 to 54 year old demographic –crushed second place MSNBC.  The hardcore left network attracted 1.2 million primetime viewers — and only 82,000 in the key demographic category.

(Whoa!  You mean that the left-leaning network that is said to appeal to the younger generation attracted only one-sixth of the FOX number in that group?  Something to ponder.  But I digress.)

CNN – the once self-proclaimed “most trusted name in news” – did not even hit the one million mark in primetime viewers.  They came in with a pitiful 856,000 viewers and 200,000 in the 25 to 54 year old demographic group.  (Gads! Even CNN beat out MSNBC with young viewers.)

“Jesse Watters Primetime” got top billing with 4.4 million viewers – and 600,000 viewers in the key demographic.  It was the strongest showing since the show started in the 8 p.m. time slot.  And for the first time, it took the top spot from “The Five,” which averaged 3.9 million viewers – and 400,000 in the key younger demographic.

Daytime viewership was similar in terms of the competitive relationship. FOX brought in 1.9 million viewers — 260,000 in the 25 to 54 demographics.  MSNBC attracted 712,000 viewers – 82,000 in the key graphic.  CNN had 523,000 viewers – 110,000 in the key demographic.

When compared to the 2020 presidential election year viewership, FOX is up 17 percent and MSNBC and CNN both lost 40 percent of their audience.  As has been the case for most months, FOX viewership exceeds that of MSNBC and CNN combined.  And the gap is getting wider.

FOX overwhelms the competition despite the fact that both CNN and MSNBC – especially MSNBC – have gone on the attack against the Murdock-owned network.

So, there ‘tis.

About The Author

Larry Horist

So, there ‘tis… The opinions, perspectives and analyses of businessman, conservative writer and political strategist Larry Horist. Larry has an extensive background in economics and public policy. For more than 40 years, he ran his own Chicago based consulting firm. His clients included such conservative icons as Steve Forbes and Milton Friedman. He has served as a consultant to the Nixon White House and travelled the country as a spokesman for President Reagan’s economic reforms. Larry professional emphasis has been on civil rights and education. He was consultant to both the Chicago and the Detroit boards of education, the Educational Choice Foundation, the Chicago Teachers Academy and the Chicago Academy for the Performing Arts. Larry has testified as an expert witness before numerous legislative bodies, including the U. S. Congress, and has lectured at colleges and universities, including Harvard, Northwestern and DePaul. He served as Executive Director of the City Club of Chicago, where he led a successful two-year campaign to save the historic Chicago Theatre from the wrecking ball. Larry has been a guest on hundreds of public affairs talk shows, and hosted his own program, “Chicago In Sight,” on WIND radio. An award-winning debater, his insightful and sometimes controversial commentaries have appeared on the editorial pages of newspapers across the nation. He is praised by audiences for his style, substance and sense of humor. Larry retired from his consulting business to devote his time to writing. His books include a humorous look at collecting, “The Acrapulators’ Guide”, and a more serious history of the Democratic Party’s role in de facto institutional racism, “Who Put Blacks in That PLACE? -- The Long Sad History of the Democratic Party’s Oppression of Black Americans ... to This Day”. Larry currently lives in Boca Raton, Florida.

21 Comments

  1. GARY ROY

    WHY IN THE WORLD WOULD ANYONE WANT TO WATCH, CNN AND BSNBC, WHEN YOU HAVE THE REAL NEWS WITH FOX???

    • Tom

      Because we do not want the FOX fake reality. You know, the fake reality that caused them to have to pay up $867M in very embarrassing legal damages due to their pushing election denial and defaming good people. They were caught red handed in many lies and pleaded guilty to avoid a messy trial that they knew they would lose.

  2. Darren

    Although Fox news leans Right, they do give kudos when due to Biden and the left.
    This is called telling the Truth, who would have thought
    being honest in news could make you no.1.
    What an epiphany!

  3. AC

    Just goes to show …… what percentage of that number are tuning in for verification that FOX is comedy entertainment, not serious journalism and news?
    I guess snide remarks and cynicism about politics especially the left sells in the ratings. Dumbed down expectations I would think. America, it appears, wants to be spoon fed opinions instead of thinking on their own and deciding for themselves.
    Fox is like easy listening music stations and elevator music more noise than substance.
    It’s outrageous that the stars on FOX are compensated in the millions. What makes talking heads full of nonsense and malarkey worth that amount?

    • larry Horist

      AC… I am not surprised by your response. It wreaks of arrogance and contempt for the American people — assuming your unique superiority. It is so liberal of you. You obviously never watch FOX, or you are simply lying in accordance to your bias. FOX presents the broadest range of
      serious political discussion — providing both sides on key issues. They are the most balanced in reporting — with CNN second, MSNBC is totally one-sided left-wing propaganda. The only thing that is dumbed down is your response.

      • frank stetson

        Horist on FOX: “They are the most balanced in reporting — with CNN second”
        OK, that’s funny.
        Some critics of that “theory.”

        Ad Fontes puts them 12 points to the right of center for balance
        . *https://adfontesmedia.com/interactive-media-bias-chart/*

        All Sides puts them two clicks to the right of center for balance.
        *https://www.allsides.com/media-bias/media-bias-chart*

        Methinks most experts agree that FOX is too the right of center, many say a few steps to the right. IMO, the “newscasters” are far less biased than the marque mouths —- however, the marque mouths are far more to the right than any MSNBC looney liberal is too the right.

        You want balanced: try BBC, Forbes, Newsweek, or Reuters.

      • Tom

        Way to go Larry, your typical assault on a respondent while not stating anything of value to the discussion. And your comment about superiority only goes to show that you have an inferiority complex and have difficulty handling those that have intelligent comments that don’t agree with you. You really are such a petty guy!!!

        I have never seen anything that supports your lie that AC has contempt for the American people. I do think he has contempt for wannabee writers like you that spew lies and spin on almost every topic. FOX presents the broadest range of serious ONE WAY political discussions. And when they claim balance, what they do is put a strong right wing warped argument against a moderate to slightly left argument. In the case of Hannity, he constantly interrupts anyone on the left and will not let them speak as he tries to steer them to agree with himself. I do think Neil Cavutto is an honest good journalist – the rest of them just parrot the Sinclair Corporate line which is very GOP. And that includes fake Christian Ingraham. Most of them are useless just like many of your articles!

        During Trump’s Manhattan business fraud and election interference trial (commonly mis-titled the Stormy Daniels Trial) I took the time to watch a legal network that had lawyers from inside the courtroom reporting and also showing Trump’s exit rants every day. I then watched MSNBC, FOX, and CBS for how they covered the day. FOX was the biggest liar and spinner on almost every fact. MSNBC was the most accurate. CBS was similar in accuracy to MSNBC.

        Larry, it is you that is lying. You are the only thing dumbed down Larry. But I will continue to try to make you a better and more honest writer.

        • larry Horist

          Tom ….. MSNBC is the most accurate???? …..LOL. Not even folks on the left believe that. You are not only arrogant, but absurd. Just old Waldorf perched on the balcony venting your spleen with disinformation and childish meaningless insults. I could take on the mission of making you a more intelligent and rationally person — or at least less pompous and arrogant — but I do not have time for impossible tasks. So, flay away as you please.

          • frank stetson

            Absolutely correct Mr. Horist, not the most accurate. HOWEVER, according to most experts, like Al Fontes Media posted above, MSNBC is much more accurate than FOX which actually pays money to lie…….

            Facts are our friends.

            Name calling is the refuge of the weak minded. Facts are not their friends.

          • Tom

            Larry, apparently you flipped out and did not read my whole comment. I listed to an independent lawyer channel that was in the court room. I listened to their summaries, four of them. Then I listened to FOX. Then MSNBC. Then CBS. Then CNN. Then I read independent journals. FOX was the least accurate from what was being reported outside of the courtroom and in the documents. Fox spun everything as unfair to Trump and never reported all of the decisions Judge Merchan granted Trump!!!

            For instance, when FOX reported that after a day in court Trump went to the Bogeta, FOX failed to report that the black lady he hugged there was one of his employees and that the whole thing was staged. FOX also failed to report that the whole pizza delivery to the Fire Department station was a hoax and was staged!!! The pizza were already there!!! FOX failed to report the accuracy of details inside the courtroom and never reported anything negative about Trump, like how many times he was napping during proceeding!!!! And it goes on and on how FOX misreported by spin the entire event!!!

            Way to go Larry, your typical assault on me while not stating anything of value to the discussion shows your intellectual capacity for fruitful discussion!!! And your comment about arrogant, and absurd, and “Just old Waldorf perched on the balcony venting your spleen with disinformation and childish meaningless insults” only shows just how childish you really are!!! It shows just how bad your tolerance is for the truth!!! It again, only goes to show that you have an inferiority complex and have difficulty handling those that have intelligent comments that don’t agree with you. You really are such a petty guy!!!

            It was an experiment Larry!!! Apparently you do not understand the experimental process.

            Larry, lately, you are about as accurate as FOX. Neither should be trusted!!!

  4. Frank stetson

    If one constrained the field, one tends to exaggerate the capabilities of those remaining in the limited pool. Big fish, small pond. Same theory for pbp writers

    .First off, I think we can all question whether cable news is news. Or is it entertainment? That goes for either side of the political spectrum.

    Second, if you want to look as good as possible, then constrain the field to cable news outlets only. Or my question, does anyone watch network TV news? Does anyone read the news instead of watching it? And do these people matter to the count of where do you get your news?

    On cable news, Fox in the conservative arena, has few to no competitors. Amazingly, they take the lion share of conservative viewers and probably a few liberals from to time.

    I wonder what this analysis would look like if you added network TV news, print media news, and other outlets.

    For example, fox is touting its 3.5 million viewers. The New York Times has over 9 million subscribers. I believe it’s considered to be a liberal paper. The Washington Post is not far behind. I should also note that the Wall Street Journal rates very highly and is probably in the second or third position with these two.

    Additionally, if one would take all of the cable news stations and add them up,in total, I anm betting one would find a similar number of conservatives watching as liberals watching in total. It’s just that there’s more competition in the liberal news market, whereas conservatives have the monopoly known as fox. Guess that helps having only one story for conservatives. For liberals, there is a rainbow of diversity when it comes to cable news. Go figure.

    Anecdotally, I do not watch cable news, but instead rely on the New York Times for news and the New Yorker for in-depth analysis. I would like to pick up the economist, but feel I would have to take a loan to get it.

    Bottom line: congrats to Fox on their success, and I believe the timeframe is 22 years of being the cable news leader. However, I think after 22 years, it’s time to put on the big boy pants and qualify your ratings against All screen based media outlets for news. In today’s market, I believe this includes X and Facebook. But, if you just want to constrain yourself to TV screens, at least add in the network channels for an honest comparison.

    • frank stetson

      Actually, I should clarify. I do have cable news, msnbc or cnn, on in silence, in background as I work. I see the banners and follow up with the NYT for the news. I attempt to read The New Yorker religiously, but will admit —– those stories are really long, and that’s me talkin. Once in awhile, I do bring the sound up, but since the same stories run anew, every hour, I don’t turn up the volume all that much. I do watch fox and enjoy that they don’t run the same shit every hour,. But can’t take the lies from the marquee talking heads for more than a minute. Watters makes Tucker look sane.

      • Seth

        Vote right and vote white Our Democratic Party should change to a regular person during the convention

        • larry Horist

          Seth … One of the unfortunate things about American politics is basing votes on race. We should voted based on POLICIES because that is what is important. Personally, I never vote based on a person’s skin color or ancestry. Over the years, I have voted for Blacks, Asians, Hispanics, etc. … and Whites. Fortunately, the vast majority of Americans do not share your view of what a “regular person” is.

          • Tom

            Yes, vote on policies – gee will Trump ever really come up with any policies??? All we hear is whine whine whine!! And now he is afraid to debate Harris!!! The only policies he seems to have are what he repeats from Project 2025 which he lied about knowing them when many of his former staffers work for the Heritage Foundation AND his VP selection (a gift to Dems) even wrote the introductory to the book published by the Heritage Foundation President!!! WOW, and you want to talk policies!!??????

            Right now it is simple. Trump policies (when you can find one like abortion, or cutting the Education Dept. or placing loyalists in the DOJ while firing long time DOJ employees) are regressive, they are authoritative, and they take the country backward and re-institutionalize racism!!! Did you hear him at the Black Journalist convention????? Did you hear how he insulted all of the black reporters on the stage!!! Listen to Larry’s hero Trump at *https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjN5dvDTeaE* And marvel at the racism!!!!

            Harris policies, while I may disagree with some, will take this country more forward. And she seems to articulate her policies in a non-threatening and -non-racist way.

      • Tom

        Frank, in my experiment, I used Meidas Touch lawyers on three youtube channels who were in the courtroom every day of the Manhattan trial. I listened to their details and analysis. Michael Popak and Karen Agnifolo were criminal defense and Manhattan DA, respectfully. And the other lawyers were previous prosecutors and defense lawyers in the same courtroom. They gave very detailed and accurate details of in court procedures, and explained everything to the finest detail. And on the outside, they took videos and identified the shams I spoke of at the Bodega and the Fire Station. They identified the black lady Trump hugged as a Trump Campaign top rung employee. Then I did FOX, then MSNBC, then CBS, then CNN. The later three were fairly close to what the lawyers reported, just some minor differneces. FOX was way off from what the lawyers reported. If you google Meidas Touch and google Michael Popak or Karen Friedman Agnifolo, you can watch their reporting and you can find their coverage on YouTube.

        The whole purpose of the experiment was to see just how truthful FOX would be about the trial and the day to day events. I found FOX to be lying and spinning in many ways.

        I think Larry is going by some sort of polls and his own personal beliefs which are not reality.

        • Frank stetson

          I hear ya. It’s the marquee mouths that lie the most and worst. Watters and Gut field are subhuman. Watters said any man voting for Harris is not a real man. Hamazing.

          • Tom

            Yes I agree Frank. As I said before, I like Neil Cavutto, he is genuine and accurate, and he does not take any bullcrap from anyone he interviews. And Stuart Varney is not half bad either. I wonder how they survive at FOX! Yeah I never liked Gutfeld even when he was on O’Reilly’s show. And Watters is a Sinclair baboon! By the way, I found Trump’s campaign speech in Nevada and compared it to what FOX played. They heavily edited Trumps stupid comments. All of this is why I do not trust FOX. And their owner Sinclair Com is pushing this hard right wing approach FOX is using. I think Larry must be in some sort of bubble in an aging asylum not to be aware of all of this!!!

          • larry Horist

            Frank Stetson … “Watters and Gut field are subhuman” This from a man who says he does not engage in insults and name calling. It is called hypocrisy. Your stock in trade is insults, sarcasm and obsessive attacks — not to mention all those lowbrow name changes..

  5. Tom

    Larry, your idol Trump is weird. His VP Vance is weird!!! AND YOU ARE GETTING WEIRDER DAY BY DAY!!!

    • larry Horist

      Tom … you really make me laugh. The oracles on the left say the word of the day is “weird” — and you start throwing it around like the left wing zombie that you are? Have you ever had a thought of your own or are you just the political parrot you appear to be? And the usual banal insults. I like the “your idol Trump” when you know I have often written about my dislike of his personality — and some policies. You add lies to you your pathetic attacks. And you seem to think that you have some level of intelligence that I should respect. Sorry … no can do.