Fox News Tops October Cable Ratings, Surpasses 3.8 Billion YouTube Views
Fox News Tops October Cable Ratings, Surpasses 3.8 Billion YouTube Views
Brian Burns Wed, October 28, 2026 at 8:03 PM UTC
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The Five (Fox News)
Fox News Channel finished October as the most-watched network in basic cable, drawing an average of 1.1 million total day viewers and capturing more than half of the overall cable news audience, according to Nielsen Media Research.
The network outperformed rivals CNN and MS NOW combined in both total day and primetime audiences. For the month, Fox News Channel averaged 1,101,000 total day viewers and 98,000 in the key adults 25-54 demographic. In primetime, the network delivered 1,675,000 total viewers and 145,000 in the 25-54 demographic.
By comparison, MS NOW averaged 588,000 total day viewers and 925,000 in primetime, while CNN recorded 402,000 total day viewers and 598,000 in primetime. In the 25-54 demographic, MS NOW drew 62,000 viewers across total day and 95,000 in primetime, while CNN registered 60,000 in total day and 107,000 in primetime.
Fox News aired 99 of the top 100 cable news telecasts during the month, marking its 68th consecutive month leading cable news across total day and primetime. The network is currently on track to record its highest-rated midterm election year in total day viewership.
Competitors saw notable audience declines in the same period. MS NOW marked its lowest October total day and primetime totals ahead of a midterm cycle since 2014, as well as its lowest audience in the 25-54 demo for a midterm year since prior to 2002. On broadcast television, CBS programs “CBS Mornings” and “60 Minutes” each registered their lowest-rated October viewership in program history, with “CBS Mornings” remaining below 1.8 million viewers for a fifth straight month.
Jesse Watters (Fox News)
Across individual programs, Fox News held all five of the top-rated shows in cable news. “The Five” ranked first overall with 2,707,000 total viewers and 238,000 in the 25-54 demographic. “Jesse Watters Primetime” followed with 2,344,000 viewers, while “Special Report with Bret Baier” averaged 2,022,000 viewers. Late-night program “Gutfeld!” averaged 1,983,000 viewers, and “The Ingraham Angle” drew 1,940,000 viewers. In late night, “Gutfeld!” led broadcast network competitors, including NBC’s “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon” (1.3 million viewers), CBS’s “Comics Unleashed” (906,000 viewers) and NBC’s “Late Night with Seth Meyers” (863,000 viewers).
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In morning programming, “Fox & Friends” averaged nearly 1 million viewers, maintaining the top spot among cable news morning shows in the 25-54 demo for the 68th straight month. The program also outdrew “CBS Mornings” in 15 local television markets, including Atlanta, Washington, D.C., Tampa, Orlando, and Detroit.
On digital platforms, Fox News accumulated more than 3.8 billion YouTube video views between Jan. 1 and Oct. 27, 2026, according to social media analytics firm Emplifi. That total paced ahead of MS NOW’s 2.96 billion views, CNN’s 2.36 billion views, ABC News’s 1.40 billion views, NBC News’s 1.18 billion views, CBS News’s 542.9 million views and The New York Times’s 153.2 million views. Data from Comscore also showed Fox News Digital totaled 4.6 billion multiplatform views and 10 billion multiplatform minutes during the third quarter of 2026.
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Fox News Tops October Cable Ratings, Surpasses 3.8 Billion YouTube Views
Source: “AOL Money”
