CNN Momentum Grows But Still No. 3 in Primetime

It may be the No. 3 in primetime but CNN seems to have some ratings momentum.

For the first time in two years CNN has topped MSNBC for a second consecutive quarter in both total day viewers and adults 25 54 rating according to Nielsen. MSNBC remained a bit ahead of CNN in primetime but both lag well behind longtime ratings king Fox News.

MSNBC ranked second in weekday primetime topping CNN among total viewers (621 000 vs. CNN s 555 000) and A25 54 (178 000 vs. CNN s 177 000). MSNBC also ranked 2 in Monday Sunday primetime among key demo 25 54 (190 000 vs. CNN s 179 000) and total viewers (568 000 vs. CNN s 542 000).

Still every CNN weekend program was up vs. last year in the quarter while competitors Fox News and MSNBC were down double digits.

With 422 000 total viewers CNN also improved its numbers over last year (up 9%) while MSNBC (377 000 down 27%) and Fox (1.025 million down 11%) had double digit declines.

The quarter covered July through Sept. 29.

MSNBC s Morning Joe continues to lead CNN in the early airwaves in both total viewers (398 000 vs. CNN s 303 000) and 25 54 demo (133 000 vs. CNN s 107 000). Despite its sluggish start CNN s latest morning program New Day new CNN president Jeff Zucker s pet project is gaining momentum. It outperfomed the network s morning show from last year by 29% in total viewers (to 303 000) and 15% in adults 25 54 (to 107 000).

New Day is among the new shows in the network shakeup which includes another newcomer The Lead with Jake Tapper and the revived Crossfire. The Jake Tapper hosted afternoon newscast beat MSNBC with 535 000 viewers (up 8% from the year ago timeslot). Meanwhile early evening program Crossfire in its first few weeks on the air is down but both MSNBC and CNN declined by larger amounts in the time period vs. last year.

CNN s Anthony Bourdain Parts Unknown ranked No. 1 in its Saturday night slot. Its first episode of the second season in Jerusalem was the most popular to date (274 000). The Emmy winning series was just renewed for a third season.

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