The television landscape saw a decisive shift during the week of March 30, as FOX News Channel (FNC) maintained its winning streak over NBC in primetime for the third consecutive week. According to the latest Nielsen Media Research Big Data + Panel figures, FNC pulled in an average of 3.3 million weekday primetime viewers, comfortably ahead of NBC’s 2.8 million.
The network’s momentum stayed strong throughout the full week as well. In the Monday through Sunday primetime slot, FNC averaged 2,763,000 viewers compared to NBC’s 2,617,000.
When looking at the total day averages, FNC drew 1.8 million viewers, effectively outperforming the combined viewership of its cable news competitors.
A major driver for these numbers was Wednesday’s high-stakes programming. During President Trump’s primetime address to the nation, FOX News became the most-watched network in all of television.
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Between 9:00 and 9:30 PM ET, the channel averaged 6.6 million viewers, beating out CBS (5.1 million), NBC (4.7 million), and ABC (3.7 million). Earlier that same evening, the network also took the lead during the Artemis II launch; from 6:00 to 6:30 PM ET, FNC’s 3.6 million viewers surpassed NBC’s 2.8 million and CBS’s 2.2 million.
The network’s daily lineup showed consistent strength across the board. “Hannity” secured the title of the number one show in cable news for the week, averaging nearly 3.8 million viewers.
“The Five” continued its afternoon dominance with 3.7 million viewers, while “Jesse Watters Primetime” followed closely with 3.6 million. In the late-night slot, “Gutfeld!” averaged 3.2 million viewers, outpacing traditional broadcast giants like “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” (2.1 million) and “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon” (1.2 million).
Daytime programming also saw FNC programs like “America’s Newsroom,” “Outnumbered,” and “The Will Cain Show” regularly outdrawing broadcast staples such as “CBS Mornings” and NBC’s “Today Jenna & Sheinelle.”
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Weekend viewership remained robust, with Kayleigh McEnany’s “Saturday In America” topping Saturday’s ratings at 2 million viewers. On Sunday, “The Sunday Briefing” anchored by Peter Doocy and “Sunday Morning Futures” both hit the 2.1 million mark, leading the day’s cable news offerings.
As of 2026, FOX News Channel continues its 24-year run as the most-watched television news channel, currently capturing nearly 70% of the cable news viewing audience. Data from Nielsen/MRI Fusion indicates the network maintains a politically diverse viewership, while Brand Keys recently ranked the channel at the top of its loyalty rankings for both morning and evening news.
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