MSNBC MORE THAN DOUBLES CNN’S PRIMETIME AUDIENCE
MSNBC Viewership Has Doubled Over the Past Decade Despite A 33% Decrease in the Number of Pay TV Households
“Morning Joe” Remains the Most-Watched Morning Cable News Show in The Nation’s Capital; Maintains A25-54 Demo Lead Over CNN for Second Consecutive Month
MSNBC Digital Ranks as the #1 Political News Destination
(New York – May 28, 2025) — Nearly halfway through 2025, MSNBC averaged more total viewers than CNN in May in total day (545,000 vs. 353,000) and across key dayparts. In weekday primetime, MSNBC more than doubled CNN’s audience (1.1 million vs. 481,000) and topped CNN for the 102nd consecutive month. Every MSNBC Perspective and Analysis program (4 p.m. to midnight) topped CNN among total viewers. MSNBC also topped CNN among Adults 25-54 in primetime for the second consecutive month (91,000 vs. 88,000).
While May is historically a sports-heavy month, millions of Americans remained glued to MSNBC’s news coverage and analysis this past month. The average MSNBC viewer spent eight hours per week watching the network, nearly doubling the CNN viewer average. MSNBC viewership in May was up 24% compared to the two months before the inauguration, marking the largest increase of any cable news network. Year to date, MSNBC is the #3 cable network overall (behind #1 Fox News and #2 ESPN).
MSNBC Viewership Has Doubled Over the Past Decade, Despite A 33% Decrease in the Number of Pay TV Households
Over the past ten years, MSNBC viewership has doubled – from 500,000 primetime viewers in 2015 (January through May) to more than 1 million primetime viewers in 2025 to date – in the face of significant contraction of the cable television footprint. In 2025 to date, MSNBC is averaging 100% more primetime viewers and 92% more total day viewers than during the first five months of 2015, despite 33% fewer households subscribing to Pay TV. In contrast, CNN primetime viewership decreased by 2% from 2015 to 2025, while CNN’s total day viewership is down 8%.
“Morning Joe” Earns Back-to-Back Wins Over CNN Among Demo Viewers; Doubles CNN’s Morning Viewership; #1 in Washington, D.C.
In May, “Morning Joe” more than doubled CNN’s morning audience (678,000 vs. 314,000), marking its 123rd consecutive monthly win over CNN among total viewers. In addition to topping CNN in total viewers, “Morning Joe” beat CNN in the key A25-54 demo for the second consecutive month (57,000 vs. 49,000). MSNBC was the most-watched cable network in the influential Washington, D.C. market across weekday mornings for the third consecutive month.
During the first 18 weeks of the new administration, “Morning Joe” improved its audience by double digits (19%) compared to its pre-inauguration benchmarks.
“Way Too Early with Ali Vitali” more than doubled CNN’s total audience during the 5 a.m. hour in May (243,000 vs. 113,000), beating its counterpart in the time slot for the 38th consecutive month.
“MSNBC Reports” Delivers Double-Digit Viewership Growth from Pre-Inauguration Norms; Beats CNN in Total Viewers
“MSNBC Reports” (Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.) averaged 508,000 total viewers in May and topped CNN for the second straight month. MSNBC has averaged 568,000 total viewers in the daypart in the first 18 weeks of the new administration, a 21% increase from the network’s pre-inauguration norms.
MSNBC Weekend Programming Posts Double-Digit Viewer Growth Since Inauguration; Tops CNN In Total Viewership for Second Consecutive Month
MSNBC’s weekend programming (Saturday-Sunday 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.) averaged 398,000 total viewers in May, topping CNN for the second consecutive month. In the first 18 weeks of the new administration, MSNBC weekend programming has grown 34% compared to pre-inauguration norms.
MSNBC Digital Ranks as the #1 Political News Destination; Up Year Over Year on Both TikTok and YouTube; MSNBC Audio Portfolio Projected to Reach 10 Million Downloads in May
MSNBC Digital continued to rank #1 in its competitive set for unique visitors, with 31 million unique visitors in April 2025, a position held for three consecutive months.
MSNBC Digital also ranked number #1 in the competitive set for total minutes, a position held for 49 consecutive months, with 902 million minutes.
Month to date, MSNBC has had 247 million video views on YouTube, up 23% year over year. Year to date, MSNBC is also seeing gains, with 19% video view growth year over year. On TikTok month to date, MSNBC has had 209 million video views, up 417% year over year. Year to date, MSNBC is also seeing gains on TikTok, with 639% growth in video views versus a year ago.
In May, MSNBC’s audio portfolio is expected to have 10.1 million downloads across MSNBC Showcasts and MSNBC Originals.
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TV Source: Nielsen, Panel Only, Live+SD, Persons 2+ and Adults 25-54. Total Day = M-Su 6 a.m. to 6 a.m., Primetime= M-F 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. May 2025: 4/28/25-5/25/25. All stats for the new administration growth vs. pre-inauguration norms is based on 1/20/25-5/25/25 (i.e., since inauguration day) vs. 11/11/24-1/19/25 (between election week and inauguration week). U.S. Household Total Distribution, P2+ Average Audience = 12/30/24-5/25/25 vs. 12/29/14-5/31/15. Time period wins based on regularly-scheduled cable news programming. MSNBC Reports: M-F 10 a.m to 4 p.m. P2+ viewership in units: MSNBC = 507,994 vs. CNN’s 507,747.Nielsen, NPower, Reach & Frequency, M-Su 6 a.m.-6 a.m., 6-min viewing qualifier. Local Points: Nielsen, NPower, Ratings Analysis Program Report, LPM = Washington, D.C., 4/28-5/23/25, P2+, M-F 6a-10a. Race/Ethnicity Stats = Time Period Rankers, no exclusions, 4/28/25-5/22/25, M-Su 6a-6a, P2+.
Digital Source: Comscore Media Metrix, April 2025. U.S. desktop 2+ and mobile 13+ internet population. Unique visitors and total minutes. YouTube data based on YouTube Studio Analytics, May 1-26, 2025. YouTube video views. TikTok data based on ListenFirst, May 1-26, 2025. TikTok video views. Audio data from Simplecast.
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