(TheRedAlertNews.com) – The viewership ratings of Fox News have suffered a sharp decline after the axing of popular conservative host Tucker Carlson, new data shows.
Thus, in its 8 pm hour, Fox has plummeted from a 3 million viewer average to a 1.65 million viewer average since Carlson was ousted almost two weeks ago.
The steepest drop was registered last Wednesday when Fox & Friends co-host Brian Kilmeade temporarily filled the 8 pm hour.
Kilmeade attracted 1.3 million views, a 56% decline compared with Tucker Carlson’s 3 million a week earlier, The Washington Post reported, as cited by Breitbart News.
Fox News’s viewership decreased by 45% last week, seemingly due to Carlson’s ouster.
The conservative network announced on April 24 that it and the host of “Tucker Carlson Tonight” had “decided to part ways,” without giving any reasons for the move.
It said “rotating Fox News personalities” would fill Carlson’s slot until a new host for the 8 pm hour was chosen.
Breitbart points out that the network previously took the same approach for the 7 pm hour after the departure of host Martha MacCallum.
It eventually chose Jesse Watters as the new anchor for that slot, and his program, “Jesse Watters Primetime,” is described as a “major success.” So much so that Watters is deemed a potential replacement for Carlson.
Besides the expected viewership decline in the 8 pm hour, Fox News also saw a “sharp” drop in the 6 pm, 7 pm, and 9 pm hours in the 25-54 demographic.
“For more than 21 years, Fox News Channel has been cable news’ most-watched network in all categories with more Democrats, Independents, and Republicans now tuning in than either CNN or MSNBC,” the company said in a statement, vowing to preserve its news coverage.
“Attracting more than 50 percent of the cable news viewing audience with the top 12 programs in cable news, Fox News’ powerhouse team of journalists, analysts and opinion hosts are trusted more by viewers than any other news source,” it elaborated.
It is noted that Fox still leads its rivals, CNN and MSNBC, “by wide margins,” even with the post-Tucker Calrson decline.
It had gone through previous “turnaround periods” when it lost its former other star anchors, such as Bill O’Reilly and Roger Ailes.
Yet, other networks like the conservative Newsmax are now experiencing viewership growth.
“On the day Carlson was fired, Newsmax’s 8 pm offering, hosted by former Fox News host Eric Bolling, drew a competitive 531,000 total viewers, only about 200,000 behind CNN’s 8 pm hour,” The Washington Post noted.
A Newsweek report forecasted that Tucker Carlson “could take as much as a third of the Fox News audience with him should he launch his own independent internet show.”
Tucker Carlson has hinted he might launch an independent news site.
“True things prevail. Where can you still find Americans saying true things. There aren’t many places left, but there are some, and that’s enough. As long as you can hear the words there is hope. See you soon,” he declared after his Fox News ouster.
Ratings for Fox News have dropped considerably in the wake of popular anchor Tucker Carlson departing from the network. https://t.co/FCxo4syqWF
— Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) May 4, 2023
