The aftermath of President-elect Donald Trump’s decisive election victory has dealt a crushing blow to left-leaning media, with CNN hitting an all-time low in ratings, particularly in the prized 25-to-54-year-old demographic. Once a trailblazer in cable news, the network now finds itself struggling to stay relevant, with dismal viewership numbers and a looming overhaul that reportedly includes significant layoffs.
According to Nielsen data, CNN averaged just 92,000 total-day viewers in the coveted advertiser demographic this year—a 1% drop from its previous low of 94,000 in 2022. The network’s primetime demo ratings have plummeted by a staggering 52% since the election, attracting an anemic 77,000 viewers on average. Overall primetime viewership shrank 45%, down to just 405,000 viewers.
These numbers paint a grim picture for CNN, which managed to capture only 11% of cable news primetime viewers after Trump’s victory. By contrast, conservative powerhouse Fox News dominated the ratings battlefield, drawing a commanding 72% of primetime viewers. Even MSNBC, another left-leaning rival, outperformed CNN with 16% of the audience share.
Fox News’ success isn’t just in its audience share—it’s growing. Primetime viewership for the conservative network has climbed 7% since Trump’s win, according to Nielsen. Fox continues to reign as the undisputed leader in cable news for the ninth consecutive year, outperforming competitors in both total viewers and the 25-54 demo.
“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,” said Fox News Media CEO Suzanne Scott.
Meanwhile, MSNBC hasn’t escaped unscathed. The network’s primetime ratings have cratered by more than 60% since the election, with an average of just 57,000 viewers in the key demo. MSNBC’s weekend shows are also struggling. Jonathan Capehart’s weekend talk show recently pulled a dismal 12,000 viewers in the 25-54 demographic, a performance that pales compared to upstart competitor NewsNation, which tripled that number with 34,000 viewers during the same time slot.
NewsNation, a relatively new player in the cable news arena, is proving to be a rising star, outpacing MSNBC in the 25-54 demo by 35% during afternoon programming. From 12 p.m. to 7 p.m., NewsNation averaged 23,000 viewers compared to MSNBC’s 17,000, marking a significant shift in audience preferences.
CNN, however, attempted to put a positive spin on its grim performance. In a press release, the network claimed, “CNN ranked again as a top 5 network in all of cable in Total Day among [people age 2 and over] for the 5th consecutive year and in the top 10 among [the 25-to-54 demographic].”
But the numbers don’t lie. The post-election landscape shows a clear trend: Americans are tuning out networks that fail to resonate with their values and priorities. As Fox News continues to thrive by focusing on issues that matter to everyday Americans, CNN and its left-leaning peers face an uphill battle to regain trust and viewership in a media environment that increasingly demands authenticity and alignment with the audience’s concerns.
