Another big political night, another strong showing for Fox News.
Fox News was the most-watched cable news channel during Tuesday’s coverage of the Nevada GOP caucuses, winning the full-night coverage from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. PT by averaging 2.6 million viewers, compared to 1.7 for CNN. MSNBC lagged behind with 952,366 viewers, according to Nielsen. Fox also edged CNN during that time period in the key news demo of adults aged 25-54.
The caucuses themselves got off to a rocky start, however, with reporters on the ground lighting up Twitter with examples of disorganization
The real action then occurred over a two-hour span from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. PT, when votes were counted, Donald Trump was declared the winner and he gave his victory speech. Fox News nearly beat CNN and MSNBC combined during this two-hour window, averaging 2.03 million viewers, compared to CNN’s 1.2 million and MSNBC’s 867,852.
CNN’s Democratic town hall with Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. PT beat Fox News in the key demo during that time period. However, Fox News managed to finish first in total viewers while the Town Hall aired on CNN.