Fact check: Which news network has the highest viewership in the US, Fox News or MSNBC?

1. Summary of the results

Based on the comprehensive ratings data provided, Fox News consistently maintains the highest viewership among cable news networks compared to MSNBC across multiple time periods in 2025.

The data shows a clear pattern of Fox News dominance:

• First Quarter 2025: Fox News averaged 3.012 million total primetime viewers compared to MSNBC's 1.024 million ^[1]
• Second Quarter 2025: Fox News maintained its lead with 2.633 million total primetime viewers versus MSNBC's 1.008 million ^[2]
• July 2025: Fox News averaged 2.41 million viewers in primetime while MSNBC had 865,000 ^[3]
• Week of August 4, 2025: Fox News continued its dominance with 2.290 million total primetime viewers compared to MSNBC's 821,000 ^[4]

The viewership gap is substantial, with Fox News consistently drawing more than double MSNBC's audience across all measured periods.

2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints

The original question lacks several important contextual factors that could provide a more complete picture:

• Total day viewership patterns: While primetime numbers show Fox News leading, the data also reveals Fox News dominates in total day viewership with 1.632 million viewers versus MSNBC's 596,000 in Q2 2025 ^[2]
• Demographic breakdowns: The analyses don't provide information about viewer demographics, which could be crucial for advertisers and understanding audience composition
• Seasonal variations: The data shows some fluctuation in Fox News viewership from Q1 to Q2 2025, dropping from 3.012 million to 2.633 million primetime viewers ^{[1] [2]}
• Competition from other networks: The question only compares Fox News and MSNBC, omitting CNN and other cable news competitors that might provide additional context
• Streaming and digital viewership: Traditional cable ratings may not capture the full picture of news consumption in the digital age

3. Potential misinformation/bias in the original statement

The original question itself is factually neutral and straightforward, asking for a direct comparison between two specific networks' viewership numbers. There is no apparent misinformation or bias in the phrasing of the question.

However, potential areas where bias could emerge include:

• Cherry-picking time periods: Someone could selectively cite data from periods that favor their preferred narrative, though the consistent pattern across multiple quarters makes this difficult
• Conflating viewership with credibility: High viewership numbers don't necessarily correlate with accuracy or journalistic quality, though this distinction isn't relevant to the specific question asked
• Ignoring context: Presenting these numbers without acknowledging factors like audience demographics, advertiser preferences, or the broader media landscape could be misleading in certain contexts

The data consistently supports the conclusion that Fox News has significantly higher viewership than MSNBC across all measured time periods in 2025.