2008: The Year Politics Broke!

The numbers are in for the cable news networks for the first quarter of 2008. The verdict? Thanks in large part to the nation's ravenous interest in the political season, Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC all enjoyed a strong first quarter, particularly compared with the seemingly dismal news coming from much of the rest of the industry. Today, employees of the cable news networks were falling all over themselves, trying to out-tout each other's accomplishments. Herein, some of the highlights:

From the CNN release:

For the first time in six years, CNN is the #1 cable news network in prime time (M-Su), winning the first quarter 2008 in the crucial P25-54 demographic, and among the younger demos 18-34 and 18-49. For the quarter, CNN programming resulted in an impressive 87% increase in the P25-54 demographic versus the same period last year (444,000 vs. 238,000), while FOX News grew only 10% (430,000 vs. 390,000), and MSNBC increased 66% (325,000 vs. 196,000). Among younger viewers 18-34, CNN also grew significantly and was top-rated with 141,000 viewers, a whopping 135% advantage vs. last quarter's 60,000 viewers. In the 18-49 demographic, CNN outperformed the competition with 380,000 viewers, 91% more than the same period last year.

From the Fox News release:

FOX News Channel (FNC) extended its streak as the most-watched cable news channel during the first Quarter of 2008, in both Total Day and Prime Time viewership, according to Nielsen Media Research. Among all basic cable channels, FNC ranked fourth for the Quarter in Prime Time viewership, with CNN and MSNBC lagging behind at 14th and 27th respectively.

In Prime Time, FNC commanded the lead with an average of 1,809,000 viewers for the Q1 2008 (up 13% over Q1 2007), compared with CNN's 1,251,000 and MSNBC's 777,000. In Total Day, FNC led the cable news competition again with 955,000 total viewers (up 11%) compared to CNN's 635,000 and MSNBC's 396,000.

And from the MSNBC release:

April 1, 2008 - MSNBC ends March 2008 tied for #2 in primetime in the advertiser-friendly 25-54 demographic, the best monthly finish for MSNBC compared to CNN since May 2001. In primetime, there is a true three-way race in cable news, with only 66,000 viewers A25-54 separating first and second place. MSNBC also delivered its best-ever quarterly weekday primetime ratings in 1Q08 in total viewers, and best in the 25-54 demographic since 4Q01. Additionally, MSNBC's top-rated "Countdown with Keith Olbermann" bested CNN at 8 p.m. in March, the first month of head-to-head competition with Campbell Brown, according to Nielsen Research time-period data.