MS NOW Grows in Every Daypart as Midterms Near; Fox News Slides Year Over Year

By Amara Osei

MS NOW was the only cable network to post week-over-week gains in both total viewers and the Adults 25-54 demo (the audience segment advertisers price against) in primetime and total day during the week of October 26, 2026, according to Nielsen Big Data + Panel data. That is a narrow claim, and it matters: one strong week before the midterms is a signal, not a trend. The demo doubled against the same week a year ago — up 100% — while Fox News, the total-day leader, was the only network to decline in the yearly comparison.

How did each network perform?

Fox News averaged 1.628 million total primetime viewers and 154,000 A25-54 viewers. That is a 7% drop in total viewers but a 10% gain in the demo versus the week beginning October 19 — the only double-digit demographic growth of the three networks. In total day, Fox News averaged 1.088 million viewers and 101,000 in the demo, down 6% and 2% respectively.

Against the same week in 2025, Fox News fell 23% in primetime total viewers and 20% in the demo, with total-day declines of 24% and 25% — the steepest yearly erosion in the set.

MS NOW averaged 998,000 primetime viewers and 116,000 demo viewers, up 5% in both measures week over week. Total day came in at 622,000 viewers and 70,000 in the demo, up 2% and 4%. Year over year, MS NOW gained 30% in primetime total viewers and 100% in the demo; total day rose 19% and 56%. The caveat: it still ranks third in primetime total viewers and sixth in the demo among all basic cable networks.

CNN averaged 618,000 primetime viewers and 111,000 demo viewers, down 2% and 5%. Total day was flat at 424,000 viewers with the demo down 2% to 64,000. CNN slid from fifth to sixth in primetime total viewers among basic cable networks. Yet the yearly picture is stronger: primetime up 40% in total viewers and 85% in the demo, total day up 13% and 14%.

Which shows and hours won?

Fox News held 12 of the 15 most-watched cable news shows, led by The Five at 5 p.m. ET with 2.74 million total viewers. MS NOW placed three programs in the ranking:

• The Briefing with Jen Psaki (9 p.m. ET): 1.242 million viewers, No. 13
• Deadline: White House with Nicolle Wallace (5 p.m. ET): 1.217 million, No. 14
• The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell (10 p.m. ET): 1.204 million, No. 15

In the demo, Fox News took 11 of the top 15 spots, with The Five first at 248,000. MS NOW's The Briefing with Jen Psaki ranked eighth with 142,000; The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell took 10th with 134,000; All In with Chris Hayes took 12th with 132,000. CNN NewsNight with Abby Phillip (10 p.m. ET, five nights a week) placed ninth with 139,000.

By individual nights, MS NOW won the primetime demo on Monday, October 26. CNN took first in the primetime demo on Saturday, October 31, plus the 6–8 p.m. ET block, and led the demo between 12 and 4 p.m. ET on Sunday, November 1.

Fox News retained first place in total-day total viewers among basic cable networks and moved from third to second in the total-day demo; MS NOW stayed third in total-day viewers and sixth in the demo; CNN held fourth in total-day viewers and moved from eighth to seventh in the demo.

What happens next?

The yearly comparisons flatter MS NOW and CNN and penalize Fox News, but a midterm week is a uniquely distorting lens — election-night coverage in the following week's data will show whether MS NOW's demo momentum survives contact with a high-stakes news cycle.