Following the November presidential election, Fox News Channel achieved record-breaking viewership, solidifying its position as the leading cable news network. Meanwhile, competitors MSNBC and CNN experienced significant declines in audience numbers.

The highly anticipated election between President-elect Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris, coupled with ongoing news regarding Trump's cabinet selections, drew viewers to Fox News for coverage and analysis. The network captured a substantial 62% share of the cable news audience, averaging nearly two million viewers throughout the day. This marks Fox News' sixth highest-viewed month ever and its second-best November on record. No other cable news network reached the one million viewer mark, with ESPN trailing in second place with 741,000 average viewers.

Anchors Martha MacCallum and Bret Baier spearheaded Fox News' "Democracy 2024" election coverage. (FOX News Media)

In primetime, Fox News further cemented its dominance, attracting an average of 3.2 million viewers, significantly outperforming competitors. ESPN secured the second position with two million viewers, while MSNBC and CNN lagged behind with 1.1 million and 725,000 viewers, respectively. Even combined, their viewership fell short of Fox News' impressive numbers.

Fox News Channel's primetime lineup features Laura Ingraham, Jesse Watters, Sean Hannity, and Greg Gutfeld. (Fox News)

Fox News also maintained a strong lead within the coveted 25-54 demographic, averaging 282,000 total day viewers, compared to CNN's 108,000 and MSNBC's 91,000. This trend continued during primetime, with Fox News averaging 476,000 viewers in this demographic, surpassing CNN's 196,000 and MSNBC's 161,000.

On Election Day itself, Fox News Media's comprehensive coverage across multiple platforms, including Fox News Channel, FOX Network, FOX Business Network, and Fox News Digital, garnered nearly 13.6 million viewers and 4.4 million within the key demographic. The network's "Democracy 2024" primetime coverage alone drew nearly 10.8 million total viewers and 3.3 million in the key demo. The subsequent coverage of Harris's concession speech also ranked first in television viewership, attracting nearly eight million viewers and 1.4 million in the key demo. This marks the 45th consecutive month that Fox News has held the top spot in cable news viewership for both primetime and total day, across both total viewers and the key demographic.

"The Five" led cable news viewership with an average of 4.4 million total viewers and 510,000 in the key demo. (FOX News Media)

Several Fox News programs, including "The Five," "The Ingraham Angle," "Jesse Watters Primetime," and "Hannity," achieved dominant ratings within their respective timeslots. "Gutfeld!" also experienced its most successful month since its launch. Other programs like "Special Report with Bret Baier," "FOX & Friends FIRST," "FOX & Friends," "America’s Newsroom with Bill Hemmer and Dana Perino," "The Faulkner Focus," "Outnumbered," "America Reports with John Roberts and Sandra Smith," "FOX News @ Night," and "Your World with Neil Cavuto" also contributed to the network's overall success. Weekend programs like "Life, Liberty & Levin" and "Sunday Morning Futures" also secured top viewership in their respective time slots.

Since Election Day, MSNBC has experienced a sharp decline in viewership, down 42% in total viewers and 52% during primetime. The network also lost a significant 57% of its primetime audience within the key demographic compared to 2024 averages. CNN also saw declines, with a 30% drop in total viewers and a 39% drop during primetime. In contrast, Fox News commands a 73% share of primetime cable news viewers and a 69% share of total viewers since Election Day. The network has also outperformed major broadcast networks ABC, CBS, and NBC, as well as all other cable networks since Election Night.

MSNBC has faced additional challenges beyond declining viewership. The network's "Morning Joe" co-hosts, Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski, drew criticism from viewers and colleagues for their meeting with Trump shortly after the election, following years of characterizing him as a threat to democracy. Furthermore, parent company Comcast's announcement to spin off its cable assets, including MSNBC, has created uncertainty among staff regarding resource allocation. Additionally, FEC filings revealed donations from the Harris campaign to MSNBC host Rev. Al Sharpton's nonprofit organization prior to a friendly interview he conducted with the Democratic nominee.

All data is provided by Nielsen Media Research.