CableTV Ratings: Fox, MSNBC Dominate

Fox News and MSNBC continue to dominate as the most-watched networks on basic cable, according to Nielsen Media Research for the week of June 12 to June 18.

For Fox, the No. 1 ranking in total viewers marks the 24th consecutive week it has finished in the top spot, even beating traditional cable network powerhouses such as ESPN, HGTV, TBS and USA Network, according to The Hill.

Overall, the 21st Century-owned network averaged 2.35 million viewers in primetime and averaged 1.508 million in total day (6 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. EST).

In the key 25-54 demographic that advertisers covet most for the full week — including on the weekend — the network averaged 460,000 viewers in primetime to MSNBC's 435,000 and CNN's 348,000.

MSNBC is also enjoying its best year in its 21-year history, finishing second with an 1.942 million total viewers in primetime and third in total day behind Fox and Nickelodeon with 1.009 million total viewers.

The Comcast-owned network also won a close race with Fox in the key 25-54 demographic June 12 to June 16 on weekday nights, delivering an average of 540,000 in the category against Fox's 537,000 and CNN’s 392,000.

CNN, which is also up nearly 50 percent year-over-year, ranked seventh in primetime in total viewers with 1,028,000 and fifth in total day with an average of 831,000.