CNN gets a campaign bump

Political coverage boosted CNN in the first quarter of the year, handing the cable news network its first prime-time win over Fox News since late 2001 in the key 25- to 54-year-old advertising demographic.

CNN attracted 444,000 of those viewers on average during the last three months, 87% more than the same period last year. Fox News, which continued to draw the biggest audience overall, placed a close second in the key demographic with 430,000, up 10%. MSNBC took third with 325,000, a rise of 66%.

CNN’s ratings growth has largely followed the contours of the presidential race. In March, a relative lull in the primary campaign, the network fell back into second place in the key demographic, tied with MSNBC. Both networks had an average of 333,000 viewers in that age group, while Fox News edged them out with 399,000.

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-- Matea Gold