Wednesday night’s CNN town hall featuring former President Donald Trump was a resounding success. Numerous individuals commended the former president for his performance, while the network relished in its highest primetime ratings in weeks, surpassing both Fox News and MSNBC in overall viewership among the crucial 25-54 age group.
Based on Nielsen Fast National data reported by Mediaite, CNN garnered an impressive 3 million total viewers for the event that commenced at 8 p.m. Notably, within that viewership, 703,000 individuals fell into the coveted 25-54 age demographic, which is typically the target audience for television networks and programs. To put this into perspective, CNN’s primetime slot had been averaging a meager 500,000 viewers in the past few weeks, even after Tucker Carlson, whose previous show aired at the same time, left Fox News.
CNN’s town hall ratings not only outperformed its cable news rivals, Fox News and MSNBC but also highlighted a significant decline in Fox News viewership since Tucker Carlson’s departure.
While Fox News narrowly surpassed MSNBC in total viewers with 1.412 million compared to 1.372 million, it fell short in the key demographic, securing 125,000 viewers compared to MSNBC’s 155,000.
This notable shift in dynamics is particularly significant considering that Fox News has traditionally enjoyed double or even triple the viewership of CNN and MSNBC during primetime hours. However, the departure of Carlson has had a detrimental impact on Fox News’ viewership numbers.
While the initial ratings of the town hall were undoubtedly impressive, they might not provide the complete picture. It’s worth noting that CNN.com and its apps also live-streamed the event, and the initial data did not incorporate the viewership from those streaming platforms. As a result, the subsequent data is expected to offer a more accurate and comprehensive viewership analysis.
Trump’s supporters enthusiastically praised his performance during the town hall, and even some of his staunchest critics acknowledged his strong showing. Notably, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) expressed her disapproval on Twitter, stating that “CNN should be ashamed of themselves” for providing Trump with a “platform.”
Trump is still a savage!
Walked into the CNN Townhall like a boss and left like a king!!!
— SixPack™️ (@starkrob21) May 11, 2023
Similarly, Keith Olbermann, previously associated with ESPN and MSNBC but now known for his leftist social media rants, strongly criticized CNN, claiming that the network had bestowed credibility upon Trump’s controversial views. Olbermann went so far as to call for the termination of CEO Chris Licht and suggested that the network’s owners should sell the brand due to the damage caused.
While CNN’s town hall event featuring Trump received significant viewership, 3 million viewers used to be regular nightly viewership for its rival, Fox News. Nonetheless, CNN appears to have struck ratings success with the Trump event held at St. Anselm College in New Hampshire, a crucial state in primary voting. Given that the event was promoted as a Republican presidential town hall, there is a possibility that CNN may extend invitations to other GOP candidates for similar events as the primaries approach.
