Fox News’s new primetime lineup has helped the network recover its ratings domination after firing Tucker Carlson.
Key Details
- On April 24, Fox News ousted Tucker Carlson from his news desk, allegedly due to an undisclosed agreement in the Dominion settlement to keep him off the air through 2025.
- On June 6, Carlson released the first episode of Tucker on Twitter—now Tucker on X—accruing millions of views in his first episode.
- On June 26, Fox News announced its new primetime lineup would premiere July 17, after several months of declining ratings without Tucker Carlson Tonight.
- On August 24, Newsweek received a statement from Fox News showing that ratings had seen a 50% volume increase in the last month, rebuilding its prior viewership.
Why It’s Important
Fox News remains one of the most popular and controversial news sources in the U.S. In the month of August, the channel averaged 1.2 million total day viewers, compared to 952,000 for MSNBC and 545,000 for CNN. The roundtable program The Five also remains one of the most popular cable shows on television, with an average of 2.7 million viewers.
Tucker Carlson Tonight was one of the network’s most popular shows, having broken records in July 2020 when it became the highest-rated cable program in history with an average nightly audience of 4.33 million viewers. Being fired in April, Carlson’s audience left with the popular host and caused Fox News’s ratings to crash beneath rival news networks like MSNBC.
Its new lineup with hosts Jesse Waters, Laura Ingraham, Sean Hannity, and Greg Gutfeld has resolidified the network’s daily content, resulting in millions of viewers returning to the network. While Tucker Carlson’s show has seen diminishing viewership from its explosive premiere in June, he has still proven able to stay topical and relevant thanks to large splashy viral interviews with controversial hosts, in addition to the approval of X.com owner Elon Musk.
Fox News’s GOP debate on August 23 reportedly averaged 12.8 million viewers, while Carlson’s exclusive softball interview with President Donald Trump drew 14.8 million, according to Mashable.
In a Monday interview, Carlson claimed that being fired from Fox News was good for him and helped humble him, keeping him from becoming a “truly horrible person” with an out-of-control ego. He is currently seeking venture capital to build a new media production company despite being technically under contract at Fox News.
Notable Quote
“[Fox’s] primetime is also up 26% in viewers and 47% in the [age 25–54 demographic]. Kicking off the new lineup at 7 PM/ET, The Ingraham Angle garnered 1,945,000 viewers and 183,000 in the 25–54 demo. Following at 8 PM/ET, Jesse Watters Primetime garnered 2,479,000 viewers and 243,000 with A25–54, making it the highest-rated program in primetime viewers and second overall behind only The Five. The program grew the timeslot nearly 50% versus the prior month and posted double and triple-digit advantages over the competition on CNN and MSNBC,” says Fox News.