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

Fox News finished 2024 with the highest audience share in nearly a decade and marked nine years in a row as the most-watched network in cable news.

The hit show “The Five” smashed records as the number one cable news program in viewers and became the “first non-primetime program to ever deliver four million viewers in the fourth quarter,” according to a press release from Fox News.

It was also a huge year for two hosts of “The Five,” Jesse Watters and Greg Gutfeld. The late-night hit ‘Gutfeld!’ was the most watched in the 25-54 age demographic and “Jesse Watters Primetime” topped the 18-49 year old demographic.

During its highest-rated fourth quarter ever (4,026,000 P2+; 429,000 A25-54), The Five made history by becoming the first non-primetime show to reach over four million viewers and by topping cable news in viewership for three straight years.

With an average of 3.4 million viewers and 331,000 in the 25–54 demographic, FNC’s late afternoon ensemble program (weekdays, 5 PM/ET) attracted the greatest audience of any cable news program in 2024. With The Ingraham Angle topping the 7 PM/ET timeslot with 2.5 million viewers and 278,000 in the 25-54 demographic, FNC’s primetime lineup dominated the cable news competition.

With 3.1 million primetime viewers and 352,000 in the 25–54 demographic, Jesse Watters Primetime was the most popular cable news program at 8 PM/ET.

Hannity, which airs weekdays at 9 PM/ET, attracted the third-largest viewership with 2.8 million viewers and 341,000 in the 25–54 demographic.

Averaging 2.5 million viewers and 355,000 in the 25-54 demo, FNC’s late-night hit Gutfeld! (weekdays, 10 PM/ET) had its finest year since its debut, surpassing both cable and broadcast competition and earning the program’s highest-ever rating.

Gutfeld! dominated all cable news during the 25-54 demo. In terms of viewers and the 25–54 demographic, Gutfeld! continued to upend the late-night scene, surpassing broadcast shows like ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live!, CBS’ The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, and NBC’s The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.

FOX News Media CEO Suzanne Scott said, “Throughout coverage of a tumultuous political cycle, wars in the Middle East, and major breaking news events, millions of viewers across the political spectrum continued to tune into FOX News Channel for our unrivaled reporting and analysis. I am extremely proud of our entire team for proving once again why we are the nation’s most-watched network, as we outpaced the competition in covering the stories that mattered most to everyday Americans.”

“During the 2024 election cycle, more viewers turned to FNC than any other cable news network for historic political news, including the lead-up to and following election night, headline-grabbing interviews, presidential debate simulcasts, the Republican and Democratic National Conventions, the assassination attempts against former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden dropping out of the presidential race. According to Nielsen Media Research, FNC was the most watched cable news network in every swing state, including Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin,” Fox News said in a press release.

“Since the election, FOX News captured 72% of the cable news audience in primetime as MSNBC and CNN ushered in historic declines. In primetime, MSNBC has seen 65% of its A25-54 audience flee the channel, with the network delivering only 51,000 in A25-54 and 576,000 viewers (-57%). CNN has lost over half of its audience in primetime in the A25-54 demo, averaging 70,000 (-56%) in A25-54 and 378,000 viewers (-49%). FNC has notched 374 of the top cable news telecasts since the day after the election, with MSNBC and CNN failing to garner over two million viewers since November 6th,” the press release added.

More Independents than any other group get their news from the network, according to a YouGov study conducted during the election campaign.