CNN Wins Paris Interview, Loses Primetime

Larry King’s interview with Paris Hilton gave CNN a boost in the 9 p.m. slot Wednesday, but the network nonetheless saw Fox News Channel lead the all-news category in primetime.

CNN, which had hyped the Hilton interview since last weekend -- her first TV interview since being released from jail -- pulled 3.1 million persons two- plus during the 9 p.m. Larry King Live timeslot. It topped Hannity & Colmes on Fox News (1.6 million) and MSNBC’s Scarborough Country (502,000) during the time slot.

But Fox News edged out CNN in primetime Wednesday night thanks to a strong performance by The O’Reilly Factor, which pulled 2.5 million persons two- plus during the 8 p.m. hour. Fox News averaged 1.858 million viewers in primetime, topping CNN (1.851 million) and MSNBC (279,000).