CNN's "American Morning" — which dominated its competition the morning after the election, with 2.1 million viewers — is facing increasingly tough competition from MSNBC's "Morning Joe" in the battle for second place in the cable news morning ratings race. "Morning Joe" won both total viewers and the demo last week, the week of November 10-14.
"Morning Joe" beat "American Morning" in total viewers three out of five days the week of November 10-14, according to Nielsen ratings (Monday, Thursday, and Friday - see below). For the week, "Morning Joe" averaged 605,2000 total viewers while "American Morning" averaged 578,000 total viewers.
In the advertiser-friendly Adults 25-54 demographic, "Morning Joe" beat "American Morning" two out of five days of the week November 10-14, according to Nielsen ratings (Wednesday and Friday - see below). For the week, "Morning Joe" averaged 245,600 A25-54 viewers while "American Morning" averaged 239,000 A25-54 viewers.
"Morning Joe" may be benefiting from a surge of mainstream attention to the program. In her post-election special, Oprah Winfrey said she loves the show, and host Joe Scarborough attracted significant attention after accidentally saying "f*ck" on air.
Fox News' "Fox & Friends" remains the top rated morning show on cable by significant margins.
Separately, "American Morning" fired eight staff members Friday — but insiders assured TVNewser, which reported the news, that the economy was not to blame:
An insider tells us the grim economic picture is not to blame. Those cut include writers and producers.
"This is driven by editorial changes in the program," a CNN spokesperson tells TVNewser. "The show has evolved and this staff restructuring will better meet the program's current editorial needs."
The insider also tells us the show is looking to hire three new producers.
Week of November 10-14
Total Viewers
Fox & Friends: 1,135,800
American Morning: 578,200
Morning Joe: 605,200
A25-54
Fox & Friends: 336,800
American Morning: 239,000
Morning Joe: 245,600
Monday, November 10
Total Viewers
Fox & Friends: 1,256,000
American Morning: 603,000
Morning Joe: 617,000
A25-54
Fox & Friends: 402,000
American Morning: 251,000
Morning Joe: 228,000
Tuesday, November 11
Total Viewers
Fox & Friends: 1,133,000
American Morning: 587,000
Morning Joe: 559,000
A25-54
Fox & Friends: 320,000
American Morning: 258,000
Morning Joe: 242,000
Wednesday, November 12
Total Viewers
Fox & Friends: 1,131,000
American Morning: 586,000
Morning Joe: 580,000
A25-54
Fox & Friends: 350,000
American Morning: 231,000
Morning Joe: 246,000
Thursday, November 13
Total Viewers
Fox & Friends: 1,080,000
American Morning: 576,000
Morning Joe: 587,000
A25-54
Fox & Friends: 281,000
American Morning: 235,000
Morning Joe: 227,000
Friday, November 14
Total Viewers
Fox & Friends: 1,079,000
American Morning: 539,000
Morning Joe: 683,000
A25-54
Fox & Friends: 331,000
American Morning: 220,000
Morning Joe: 285,000
Data via TVByTheNumbers.com
This post has been updated from its original version