CNN Press Room

CNN #2 in Cable News in August

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#1 ON WEEKENDS

CNN HAS ROBUST RATINGS GROWTH VS. LAST YEAR

BEATS MSNBC IN TOTAL DAY, PRIME TIME, DAYSIDE IN DEMOS

The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer #1 in Cable News at 5pm For the First Time Since 2008

Anderson Cooper 360 and Erin Burnett Outfront Post Higher Demo Audiences than MSNBC;

CNN Tonight with Don Lemon has Highest Delivery on Record

CNN had another very strong ratings month in August, with the network ranking #2 in cable news, while posting robust growth across the board vs. last year.

This month, CNN beat MSNBC in Total Day, prime time and dayside demos and ranked #1 on weekends.  In Total Day, CNN topped MSNBC among adults 25-54 (278k vs. 232k) for the 38th straight month, the longest winning streak in more than seven years (dating back to January 2010).  CNN also grew +39% in Total Day compared to a year ago August.

CNN surpassed MSNBC in M-Su prime time and is now back on top for the first time since February among adults 25-54.  In August, CNN averaged 427k in prime time, ahead of MSNBC’s 415k (Fox News had 472k).  CNN grew the most in cable news in prime time, increasing +55% compared to last August.  CNN has now topped MSNBC for 33 of the past 38 months in M-Su prime.  During M-F prime time, Anderson Cooper 360 and Erin Burnett Outfront posted higher demo audiences than MSNBC, and CNN Tonight with Don Lemon posted its highest delivery on record this month among adults 25-54.

CNN also dominated MSNBC each and every hour during dayside programming (9am-4pm) in the key demo 25-54 (249k vs. MSNBC’s 186k).  CNN was up +26% vs. last year, and has now topped MSNBC for the 42nd consecutive month during the day.

For the first time since 2008, The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer ranked #1 in cable news at 5pm among adults 25-54.  Several other key CNN programs also ranked #1 this month outperforming both Fox News and MSNBC including, The Lead with Jake Tapper, Early Start with Christine Romans and Dave Briggs, State of the Union with Jake Tapper, Reliable Sources with Brian Stelter and CNN Newsroom on Saturdays and Sundays.

CNN was the #1 network in cable news in weekend prime time (S/S 8-11pm) among adults 25-54, which includes CNN Original Series (The Nineties, The History of Comedy and Declassified). The network was #1 during weekend Total Day in the key demo as well.

CNN is back to being a Top 10 cable network this month.  Among ALL cable networks, CNN was #5 in Total Day and #7 in prime time among total viewers in August.

And finally, year-to-date, CNN is on track to post its best yearly performance on record among both adults 25-54 and total viewers in Total Day.

August Program Highlights and Growth:

Morning/Dayside:

Late Afternoons:

Evening/Prime Time:

Saturdays:

Sundays:

August Original Series, CNN Films and CNN Special Report Highlights:

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