Fox News Continues Strong February Cable Ratings Run

Fox News continued its strong February ratings performance last week, sweeping cable’s primetime and total day charts, according to Nielsen.

Fox News, led by its Feb. 22 coverage of the Nevada caucuses, averaged 3 million viewers in primetime during the week of Feb. 17 to Feb. 23, besting competing cable news network MSNBC which finished second with 2.2 million viewers, said Nielsen. Discovery Communications -owned networks rounded out the top five with HGTV and TLC (tied with 1.1 million viewers) and Discovery Channel (1 million viewers.)

A&E Network (1 million viewers), History (994,000), Hallmark Channel (977,000), CNN (971,000), and TBS Network (966,000), rounded out the top 10 most watched networks for the week.

Fox News’ average 1.7 million viewers on a total day basis for the week was enough to defeat MSNBC, HGTV, CNN, Nickelodeon and A&E Network, according to Nielsen. 

R. Thomas Umstead

R. Thomas Umstead serves as senior content producer, programming for Multichannel News, Broadcasting + Cable and Next TV. During his more than 30-year career as a print and online journalist, Umstead has written articles on a variety of subjects ranging from TV technology, marketing and sports production to content distribution and development. He has provided expert commentary on television issues and trends for such TV, print, radio and streaming outlets as Fox News, CNBC, the Today show, USA Today, The New York Times and National Public Radio. Umstead has also filmed, produced and edited more than 100 original video interviews, profiles and news reports featuring key cable television executives as well as entertainers and celebrity personalities.