Fox News’ ratings have taken a sharp nosedive since the firing of Tucker Carlson, with its prime-time viewership plunging by 29.6% in the week following his departure. According to data released by Nielsen, Fox News Channel averaged 1.449 million viewers for its prime-time programming from April 24 to Sunday, placing it third among cable networks.
Carlson’s 8 p.m. time slot saw a dramatic decrease in viewership since his termination, dropping from an average of 3 million total viewers per night during his final week on air to 1.48 million on Tuesday when “Fox News Tonight” – hosted by Brian Kilmeade last week and Lawrence Jones this week – replaced him in the lineup. Episodes of “Tucker Carlson Tonight” had previously accounted for five of the most-watched programs on Fox News each night he was featured, illustrating how significantly his presence impacted the network’s overall viewership numbers.
The key 25–54 age demographic ratings also experienced a steep decline following Carlson’s ousting – plummeting by as much as 75%, according to Blaze Media CEO Tyler Cardon – leaving rival networks MSNBC’s “All in with Chris Haynes” and CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360” ahead of Fox News’ own offering in terms of viewer engagement during that time slot. The few bright spots for Fox News were “The Five,” hosted by Greg Gutfeld at 5 p.m., and “Gutfeld!” at 11 p.m., which managed to draw 301,000 viewers and 216,000 key demo viewers respectively.
It appears that some of the disgruntled Fox News audience may have found refuge at Newsmax. On the day Carlson was fired, Eric Bolling’s 8 p.m show drew 531,000 total viewers – five times greater than before – only 200,000 behind CNN’s 8 p.m hour slot for that same day. This number further rose up to 562,000 on Tuesday night before dipping down again to 456,000 by Thursday evening.
Former Fox News star Megyn Kelly referred to her former employer’s ratings as a “bloodbath” while commenting on Twitter about the losses incurred due their move against Carlson; she believes that not even Bud Lite (which is currently giving away its beer in an effort to get people drinking it) has lost as much customer base as Fox has since letting go of their beloved host..
Interestingly enough though, a recent poll conducted by Redfield & Wilton Strategies revealed that 36% of Americans would be “significantly likely” or “likely” to watch an independent online show hosted by Carlson should he decide pursue such venture post-Fox dismissal; this only goes further proves his popularity and influence over the media landscape..
Since firing Tucker Carlson, Fox News Channel’s ratings in the all-important 25-54 demo have fallen off a cliff:
•6pm ET: -42%
•7pm ET: -62%
•8pm ET: -75%
•9pm ET: -70%
•10pm ET: -66%
•11pm ET: -49%Oof. pic.twitter.com/mjCyaF8zGI
— Tyler Carditis (@TyCardon) May 3, 2023
Bloodbath.
Not even Bud Lite (which is currently giving away its beer in an effort to get ppl to pls pls drink it) lost this much of its customer base. https://t.co/yvzPV2IZkL— Megyn Kelly (@megynkelly) May 3, 2023