At the midpoint of 2026, networks have flooded inboxes with all sorts of figures on their latest news ratings.

The takeaway: ABC and NBC have posted audience gains in their evening broadcasts, while CBS has had a very slight uptick from the same quarter last year.

Fox News continues to lead its main rivals by a wide margin, exceeding even their combined audience, but its audience is down versus 2025, while MS NOW and CNN saw increases. Because of the variability of viewing patterns throughout the year, the comparison is of year-over-year numbers as opposed to previous quarters.

In the second quarter, World News Tonight with David Muir topped with 8.2 million viewers, up 11% from the same period a year earlier. NBC Nightly News with Tom Llamas averaged 6.35 million, up 10%, and CBS Evening News with Tony Dokoupil posted 3.9 million, up 1%.

In the 25-54 demo, World News Tonight averaged 1.01 million, about flat from the previous year, while NBC Nightly News averaged 923,000, up 11%, and CBS Evening News posted 535,000, up 2%.

In the most recent week of June 23, World News Tonight averaged 7.52 million, up 2%, while NBC Nightly News was at 6.34 million, up 10%, and CBS Evening News averaged 4.02 million, up 3%. In the 25-54 demo, World News Tonight averaged 955,000, off by 8%, compared to NBC Nightly News with 890,000, up 6%, and CBS Evening News with 576,000, up 12%.

In cable, Fox News averaged 2.49 million viewers in primetime, down 5%, compared to MS NOW with 1.06 million, up 5%, and CNN with 716,000, up 33%. In the 25-54 demo, Fox News averaged 230,000, down 24%, compared to 121,000 for CNN, up 15%, and MS NOW with 107,000, up 18%.

In total day, Fox News averaged 1.58 million viewers, down 3%, compared to MS NOW with 655,000, up 10%, and CNN with 500,000, up 23%. In the 25-54 demo, Fox News averaged 149,000, down 36%, compared to CNN with 75,000, up 6%, and MS NOW with 67,000, up 18%.

In June primetime, with Fox News averaged 2.26 million viewers, down 19%, compared to MS NOW with 1.02 million, up 6%, and CNN with 628,000, down 2%. In the 25-54 demo, Fox News averaged 197,000, down 43%, compared to CNN with 99,000, down 26% and MS NOW with 96,000, up 1%.

In total day for June, Fox News averaged 1.45 million, down 15%, compared to MS NOW with 636,000, up 7%, and CNN with 449,000, up 1%. In the 25-54 demo, Fox News averaged 133,000, down 40%, compared to CNN with 63,000, up 24% and MS NOW with 61,000, up 2%.

In the second quarter, The Five was the top cable news show, averaging 3.58 million viewers, followed by Jesse Watters Primetime with 3.23 million, Gutfeld! with 2.84 million, Hannity with 2.8 million and Special Report with Bret Baier with 2.72 million. In the 25-54 demo, The Five led with 322,000, followed by Gutfeld! with 299,000, Jesse Watters Primetime with 283,000, Hannity with 262,000 and Special Report with 245,000.

The Rachel Maddow Show was MS NOW’s top show, averaging 2.17 million viewers, and CNN’s top program was Anderson Cooper 360, averaging 880,000.

NewsNation’s top show was Cuomo, averaging 254,000, up 44% compared in 2025. The network averaged 80,000 total day viewers, in what it said was a 48% increase versus 2025.

Get our Breaking News Alerts and Keep your inbox happy.

Comments On Deadline Hollywood are monitored. So don't go off topic, don't impersonate anyone, and don't get your facts wrong.

Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() );