Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Q1 2009 Ratings: MSNBC Tops CNN in Prime Time
As expected, and for the first time ever, MSNBC has defeated CNN and claimed second place in weekday prime time for the month of March in both Total Viewers and the A25-54 demo. MSNBC is up 22% in Total Viewers vs. March 2008 (1,147,000 vs. 1,117,000) and up 3% in A25-54 (375,000 vs. 365,000).
For March: "Countdown with Keith Olbermann" (#2 in the hour) is up 22% in the demo and up 30% in Total Viewers year-over-year. "The Rachel Maddow Show," in its seventh month, again topped CNN's "Larry King Live" in the demo, but was edged out by King in Total Viewers. "Maddow" is up 98% in Total Viewers and up 70% in the demo compared to the time slot's prior program, "Verdict with Dan Abrams."
And for the first time in more than 7 1/2 years, MSNBC's morning show beat CNN's in the demo. "Morning Joe" edged CNN's "American Morning." "A.M." still wins in Total Viewers. The last time MSNBC beat CNN in the mornings was August 2001, when Imus in the Morning occupied the 6am-10amET slot.
