Fox News Dominates November’s Ratings as ‘The Five’ Leads All Cable News

Since Election Day, Fox News has solidified its dominance in cable news, recording one of its most-watched months in history during November, while CNN and MSNBC struggled to retain viewers.

November, marked by President-elect Trump’s Cabinet announcements and the historic presidential election between Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris, saw Americans overwhelmingly turn to Fox News for coverage and commentary. By the end of the month, Fox News captured an impressive 62% share of cable news viewership.

Fox News averaged nearly two million total day viewers throughout the month, far surpassing other networks. ESPN ranked a distant second with 741,000 average viewers, while no other cable channel exceeded one million. This performance made November the second-best month in Fox News' history and the sixth-most-watched month overall.

For the 45th consecutive month, Fox News led cable news in total day and primetime viewership, including the advertiser-coveted 25–54 demographic. Flagship programs such as The Five, Gutfeld!, The Ingraham Angle, Jesse Watters Primetime, and Hannity dominated their respective time slots.

• The Five, featuring Greg Gutfeld, Jesse Watters, Dana Perino, Jeanine Pirro, and rotating co-hosts Harold Ford Jr. and Jessica Tarlov, topped cable news in November with an average of 4.4 million viewers overall and 510,000 in the key demographic.
• Gutfeld! achieved its best month since its debut, while other programs like Outnumbered, America Reports, and Special Report with Bret Baier also posted strong performances.

In contrast, liberal-leaning networks struggled to compete. MSNBC averaged 720,000 total day viewers, while CNN managed 482,000—both falling short when combined against Fox News’ audience. During primetime, Fox News averaged 3.2 million viewers, leaving MSNBC with 1.1 million and CNN with 725,000. Fox News also led the advertiser-prized 25–54 age group, averaging 282,000 total day viewers compared to MSNBC’s 91,000 and CNN’s 108,000.

Fox News’ election night coverage, branded Democracy 2024, was a resounding success. Anchored by Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum, the coverage averaged nearly 10.8 million viewers, including 3.3 million in the key demographic. Additionally, Fox News’ broadcast of Harris’ concession speech the following day attracted over 8 million viewers, making it the most-watched program of the day.

Meanwhile, MSNBC and CNN have seen significant declines in viewership since Election Day. MSNBC experienced a 42% drop in total viewers and a 57% decline in its primetime key demographic audience. CNN faced a 39% drop in primetime viewers and a 30% decrease in total viewership.

Specific MSNBC programs, such as Jose Diaz-Balart Reports, The 11th Hour with Stephanie Ruhle, and The ReidOut, recorded some of their lowest ratings ever. The network also faced backlash after its Morning Joe co-hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski revealed they had met with Trump after the election, alienating portions of their audience.

With a commanding 73% of cable news viewers in primetime and sustained leadership across all viewing metrics, Fox News has outperformed not only its direct competitors but also traditional broadcast networks like ABC, CBS, and NBC since Election Day.