CableTV: MSNBC Hits All-Time Ratings Low

MSNBC registered its lowest full-day rating in nearly a decade on Tuesday, a devastatingly low benchmark that shows just how severe the network's decline has become.

According to TVNewser, the liberal cable news network drew an average of 55,000 viewers in the all-important 25- to 54-year-old demo on Tuesday, its lowest full-day rating since July 2005, according to Nielsen ratings provided by an industry source. CNN had nearly three times as many viewers in the demo, Fox News nearly five times as many.

That low reflects a more general decline in recent years. In January, MSNBC's daytime ratings for January were down 20 percent in total and 37 percent in the demo when compared to the previous year. In prime time, total viewership was down 23 percent, while the demo dropped by 39 percent.

On his Thursday show,  Rush Limbaugh took some shots at MSNBC for prioritizing “silly diversity” over actual content.

"Do you realize there are more people going to the bathroom at one time in this country than are watching MSNBC?  And, by the way, this all happens to coincide with my ban on playing any sound bites from that network."

Network President Phil Griffin knows MSNBC needs to turn those numbers around quickly, and multiple insiders tell TheWrap, Griffin is in the process of deciding what potential changes to make, including tinkering with primetime.

One well-placed insider told TheWrap that the ratings-challenged “All In” with Chris Hayes — airing in the cable news sweet spot of 8 p.m. ET — might get uprooted for a different timeslot. It’s not clear who will replace Hayes in the event that he gets yanked from 8 p.m., but since Keith Olbermann’s 2011 exit, MSNBC has filled the all-important timeslot with internal talent rather than seeking hosts from the outside.