FOX NEWS MEDIA LEADS CABLE ACROSS MULTIPLATFORM VIEWERSHIP WHILE SURPASSING 3.8 BILLION YOUTUBE VIDEO VIEWS IN 2026

FNC Continues Reign as Number One Cable Network This Year in Primetime Viewers

FNC is Pacing to be Highest Rated Midterm Year with Total Day Viewers

The Network Notches 99 of the top 100 Cable News Telecasts in October

FOX News Drives Nearly 1 Billion More YouTube Video Views than Any Other News Brand in 2026

'CBS Mornings' and '60 Minutes' Each Post Lowest-Rated October in History with Viewers

MS NOW Racks up 12 Year October Lows in Total Viewers and 24 Year Lows in A25-54 Demo for Midterm Year

NEW YORK, Oct. 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- FOX News Media continued to dominate across linear and digital platforms in October, leading cable news viewership while outpacing competitors on YouTube and digital platforms. According to Nielsen Media Research, FOX News Channel (FNC) finished as the number one cable network in total day with 1.1 million viewers, commanding more than 50% of the cable news audience in total day and primetime and beating CNN and MS NOW combined. FNC also remained the top cable network in primetime year-to-date and the only cable network averaging more than 1 million total day viewers, outperforming ESPN despite the return of college football and Monday Night Football. Additionally, FNC is pacing to be the highest rated midterm year with total day viewers. The network secured 99 of the top 100 cable news telecasts, swept cable news in total day and primetime for the 68th consecutive month and led all broadcast and cable networks in average minutes viewed per viewer. Meanwhile, CBS Mornings and 60 Minutes each posted their lowest-rated October in program history, with CBS Mornings falling below 1.8 million viewers for the fifth consecutive month. MS NOW recorded its lowest October total day and primetime viewership ahead of a midterm election since 2014 and its lowest performance in the 25-54 demo since before 2002.

Extending its multiplatform dominance, FOX News has generated more than 3.8 billion YouTube video views year-to-date, outperforming its closest news competitor, MS NOW, by more than 840 million views, or 28%, according to Emplifi. The network also surpassed CNN by more than 1.4 billion YouTube views. Meanwhile, FOX News Digital led the news competition during the third quarter with 4.6 billion multiplatform views and 10 billion multiplatform minutes, according to Comscore. The results underscore FOX News' ability to attract and engage audiences across television, social video and digital platforms.

Meanwhile, The Five (5 PM/ET), FNC's number one program, secured 2.7 million viewers, leading all of cable news across the board. At 8 PM/ET Jesse Watters Primetime led primetime, commanding over 2.3 million viewers. Hannity remained number one at 9 PM/ET with over 1.8 million viewers, surpassing the competition including MS NOW's Monday airing of The Rachel Maddow Show (1.7 million viewers). At 7 PM/ET, The Ingraham Angle posted over 1.9 million viewers, as Laura Ingraham continued her reign as the highest rated woman in cable news. FOX News @ Night with Trace Gallagher drew 1.1 million viewers at 11 PM/ET.

FNC's hit late-night program Gutfeld! drew 2 million viewers, continuing to crush late-night television competition including NBC's The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon (1.3 million viewers), CBS' airings of Comics Unleashed (906,000 viewers) and Late Night with Seth Meyers (863,000 viewers).

The network's nightly newscast Special Report with Bret Baier (6 PM/ET) averaged over 2 million viewers and continued to close the gap with the broadcast competition. In October, Special Report led CBS Evening News in five top markets across the country including Atlanta, Detroit, Raleigh-Durham, Norfolk and Birmingham.

FNC's signature morning show FOX & Friends (6-9 AM/ET) finished the month with nearly 1 million viewers and remained the number one cable news program in the mornings with the 25-54 demo for 68 consecutive months. FOX & Friends continued to make gains on CBS Mornings, besting the broadcast show in 15 major markets throughout October including Atlanta, Washington, D.C., Tampa, Orlando, Detroit, Cleveland and more. FOX & Friends First (5-6 AM/ET) averaged 416,000 viewers.

FNC's daytime lineup continued to crush the competition, led by its two-hour morning news program America's Newsroom with Bill Hemmer and Dana Perino (9-11 AM/ET), which saw 1.4 million viewers. The Faulkner Focus at 11 AM/ET and Outnumbered at 12 PM/ET each drew 1.4 million viewers. America Reports with John Roberts and Sandra Smith (1-3 PM/ET) garnered 1.3 million viewers, while Martha MacCallum's The Story averaged 1.4 million viewers. At 4 PM/ET, The Will Cain Show delivered 1.6 million viewers.

FNC's dominance continued throughout weekend programming, winning most hours with total viewers and 25-54 demo. Kayleigh McEnany's Saturday in America (10 AM-12 PM/ET) was the most watched cable news show of the weekend drawing over 1.1 million viewers. FOX & Friends Weekend (6-10 AM/ET) followed with 949,000 viewers. The Big Weekend Show (5-8 PM/ET) drew 856,000 viewers and FOX News Saturday Night (10 PM/ET) was the top show in primetime with 835,000 viewers.

Sunday Morning Futures, which has been anchored by Larry Kudlow, at 10 AM/ET garnered 1 million viewers. Sunday Night in America with Trey Gowdy (Sunday, 9 PM/ET) was the top cable news show in primetime with 1 million viewers. The Sunday Briefing (11 AM/ET), with rotating co-anchors Peter Doocy and Jacqui Heinrich drew 937,000 viewers. Life, Liberty & Levin posted 849,000 viewers at 8 PM/ET.

OCTOBER 2026 VIEWERSHIP & 25-54 DEMO (Live + Same Day):

MONDAY – SUNDAY TOTAL DAY
FNC: 1,101,000 total viewers and 98,000 A25-54
CNN: 402,000 total viewers and 60,000 A25-54
MS NOW: 588,000 total viewers and 62,000 A25-54

MONDAY – SUNDAY PRIMETIME (8-11P)
FNC: 1,675,000 total viewers and 145,000 A25-54
CNN: 598,000 total viewers and 107,000 A25-54
MS NOW: 925,000 total viewers and 95,000 A25-54

OCTOBER RATINGS FOR THE TOP FIVE PROGRAMS IN CABLE NEWS:

Total Viewers: The Five (2,707,000), Jesse Watters Primetime (2,344,000), Special Report with Bret Baier (2,022,000), Gutfeld! (1,983,000), The Ingraham Angle (1,940,000) 

Adults 25-54: The Five (238,000), Gutfeld! (191,000), Jesse Watters Primetime (189,000), Hannity (184,000), Special Report with Bret Baier (165,000)

Source: Nielsen. Live+SD. Month of October 2026 ratings data. Average audience for cable news networks Monday-Sunday based on Total Day and Prime (6a-6a, 8P-11P), P2+, P25-54. Cable News/Broadcast Program averages exclude repeats and shows Min T/C 5.

YOUTUBE VIDEO VIEWS TO DATE ACCORDING TO EMPLIFI

FOX News Media operates the FOX News Channel (FNC), FOX Business Network (FBN), FOX News Digital, FOX News Podcasts, FOX News Audio, FOX News Books, the direct-to-consumer streaming services FOX Nation, FOX News International and the free ad-supported television service FOX Weather. Currently the number one network in all of cable, FNC has also been the most watched television news channel for over 24 consecutive years, while FBN is the top business channel on cable. FOX News Media reaches nearly 200 million people each month and is also available to live stream on FOX One.

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FOX News Media Contact:
Sofie Watson: 212.301.3818 or [email protected]

SOURCE Fox News Network, LLC