Rachel Maddow’s MSNBC show has now beaten Fox News’s The O’Reilly Factor for three straight weeks with younger viewers age 25-54.
According to a press release sent to PoliticusUSA by MSNBC:
For the week of March 27, MSNBC’s “The Rachel Maddow Show” (M-F 9-10pm) was the number-one show in the key A25-54 demo among all cable news, according to Nielsen. This is the third straight week that the “The Rachel Maddow Show” has overtaken FOX News’ “The O’Reilly Factor” in A25-54. MSNBC dayside (M-F 9am-5pm) also ranked #2 for the week, surpassing CNN in total viewers for the first time since the week of January 20, 2014.
“The Rachel Maddow Show” averaged 2.70 million total viewers and 624,000 A25-54 viewers last week (vs. CNN’s 1.22 million total viewers and 433,000 viewers A25-54, and FOX News’ 2.69 million total viewers and 537,000 viewers A25-54 in the time period). In A25-54, “The Rachel Maddow Show” beat “The O’Reilly Factor” by 40,000 viewers. This is the third straight week that “The Rachel Maddow Show” has beaten “The O’Reilly Factor” in A25-54. For the week of March 27, “The Rachel Maddow Show” aired five nights, while “The O’Reilly Factor” aired only Monday through Thursday (Friday was a special edition of “The O’Reilly Factor”).
While Fox News is dealing with the revelation that the network and its top-rated host Bill O’Reilly have paid out tens of millions of dollars to settle sexual harassment claims, Rachel Maddow and MSNBC has seen viewership surge. Fox News has struggled with younger viewers for years, but Maddow’s viewership explosion has turned what looked like a long-term issue for Fox into an immediate problem.
Fox News’s viewership lead is increasingly being carried by Fox and Friends and The O’Reilly Factor. Without the success of these two programs, MSNBC might be challenging Fox for the overall ratings lead.
Rachel Maddow has both time and ratings growth on her side. America already gets its fill of sexual harassment and evil from Donald Trump. Bill O’Reilly has become redundant. What cable news viewers are craving is facts and truth. As long as Rachel Maddow continues to specialize in both, the sky’s the limit for her MSNBC show.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
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