MS NOW Takes a Tumble in Ratings as Fox News Loses Viewers Year Over Year
MS NOW Takes a Tumble in Ratings as Fox News Loses Viewers Year Over Year
Dan ClarendonSun, August 2, 2026 at 6:37 PM UTC
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Alex Witt anchoring 'Alex Witt Reports'; the cohosts of 'The Five' - NewscastStudio/Youtube, Fox News/YouTube
MS NOW now has some making up to do in the cable news race. The latest Nielsen ratings show the network, previously called MSNBC, lost 25-to-54-year-old viewers between June and July, while Fox News and CNN posted gains.
Fox News landed 2.332 million primetime viewers, up 3 percent over June, and 204,000 primetime viewers in the Adults 25–54 demo, up 4 percent, according to July ratings compiled by Nielsen shared online by TVNewser. For the total day, Fox News averaged 1.492 million viewers, up 3 percent, and 136,000 viewers in the demo, up 2 percent. The network beat MS NOW and CNN in primetime and total-day viewers in both dayparts.
MS NOW, meanwhile, got 1.017 million primetime viewers in July, staying flat over June, and 89,000 primetime A25–54 viewers, down 7 percent. The network averaged 633,000 total-day viewers, flat over June, and 57,000 total-day A25–54 viewers, down 7 percent. The network beat CNN in total viewers in both dayparts, though TVNewer notes it’s the only network of the three to show month-to-month declines in either of the measured categories.
CNN got 658,000 primetime viewers in July, up 8 percent over June, and 102,000 primetime A25–54 viewers, up 5 percent. The network averaged 463,000 total-day viewers, up 6 percent, and 62,000 total-day A25–54 viewers, up 2 percent. The network beat MS NOW in A25–54 viewers in both dayparts.
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Fox News had the top six programs in both total viewers and A25–54 among the three networks. In both demographics, the top six programs were The Five, Jesse Watters Primetime, Gutfeld!, Hannity, Special Report with Bret Baier, and The Ingraham Angle. Coming in next in both demographics was MS NOW’s The Rachel Maddow Show. On CNN, the biggest performer in total viewers was Anderson Cooper 360.
But Fox News also got bad news: It’s the only network of the three to have lost viewers year-over-year. Compared to its performance in July 2025, Fox News dropped 3% in total viewers and 21% in the demo during primetime and 2% in total viewers and 26% in the demo for the total day.
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Source: “AOL Entertainment”
