Ignore the cable-cutting naysayers: 2015 was a good year for the top cable news networks.
Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC all saw improved ratings this year as viewers tuned in to watch coverage of the presidential campaign, terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, and continued Black Lives Matter protests, among other big news stories. But the year was an especially good one for Fox News, which attracted the highest number of viewers for the 14th consecutive year, according to the New York Times.
Fox News averaged 1.8 million viewers during prime time. For the coveted audience of 25-54 year-olds that advertisers prefer, the network pulled in 207,000 total-day viewers, compared with CNN’s 149,000 and MSNBC’s 89,000.
CNN enjoyed its highest viewership in six years with 490,000 total-day viewers—almost a quarter better than last year. MSNBC enjoyed a 2% bump over last year, with an average of 352,000 total-day viewers.