CNN Digital Shatters All Historical Records, Reaches Largest, Most Engaged Audience in History in 2020
#1 in Global, Unique Visitors, Video, Mobile, Millennials & Politics in 2020 To Date
November 2020 and U.S. Election Saw All-Time Historic Numbers for CNN Politics
2020 was a year filled with endless breaking, and global news, with COVID-19, social unrest, world news and of course, the U.S. Presidential Election. In each and every case, users all over the globe turned to CNN for reliable and trusted news and information, which the numbers show.
CNN reached its largest digital audience in history in 2020 according to Comscore, shattering all records and ranking #1 in every available month to date for global and U.S. unique visitors, wrapping the year with a monthly average of 215 million unique visitors globally (2020 global numbers represent a monthly average of January-November). CNN holds the #1 spot in every key category and is also the only news outlet to rank in the top five of each of those categories, with every other competitor falling out of the top five in either video, mobile, global or overall unique visitors.
Throughout 2020, CNN retained its position as the #1 digital news destination, according to Comscore, and held the #1 ranking for more than 4 consecutive years for U.S. unique visitors, and for more than one year for global unique visitors, by holding the #1 position in every month of 2020 to date in the key categories of global news, U.S. unique visitors, mobile unique visitors, video unique viewers, and millennial unique visitors (November 2020 data is the most current available for global traffic rankings).
In November of 2020, more people searched for the term “CNN” than ever before, expanding the gap between CNN and every other news competitor on the internet. On a single day in the month of November, CNN saw 116 million unique visitors, with 46 million people on a single story, according to Adobe.
#1 GLOBAL NEWS BRAND FOR 2020
CNN ranked as the #1 global news brand in 2020 with the number of average monthly unique visitors outpacing BBC, Yahoo News, and others in audience size across 24 key countries included in Comscore’s Media Metrix Multi-Platform worldwide rollup.
1. CNN: 216 Million Average Monthly Unique Visitors in 2020
2. BBC – 191 million average monthly unique visitors
3. Yahoo News – 155 million average monthly unique visitors
4. The New York Times Brand – 151 million average monthly unique visitors
5. DailyMail.co.uk – 141 million average monthly unique visitors
Source: Comscore Media Metrix® Multi-Platform, Custom-Defined List, Total Digital Audience, January 2020 – December 2020 monthly average, Worldwide Rollup. Based on CNN.com entity compared to a custom list of single brand, English-language, global competitors in the News/Information Category, including The United States, Canada, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Chile, China, Colombia, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Norway, Singapore, Spain, Taiwan, United Kingdom and Vietnam. CNN Brand entity used prior to October 2018.
#1 IN U.S. MULTIPLATFORM UNIQUE VISITORS IN 2020
CNN had its largest audience on record in 2020 with a monthly average of 162 million unique visitors in the U.S. – an increase of 23% versus 2019. CNN outranked The New York Times by 44 million unique visitors and Fox News by 50 million unique visitors on average in 2020 across mobile and desktop.
1. CNN: 162 Million Average Monthly Unique Visitors in 2020
2. The New York Times Brand – 118 million average monthly unique visitors
3. FoxNews.com – 113 million average monthly unique visitors
4. WashingtonPost.com – 106 million average monthly unique visitors
5. NBCNews.com – 99 million average monthly unique visitors
6. USAToday.com – 90 million average monthly unique visitors
Source: Comscore Media Metrix® Multi-Platform, Custom-Defined List, Total Digital Audience – Desktop 2+ and Total Mobile 13+, January-December 2020 monthly average, U.S. Based on CNN.com entity compared to a custom list of single brand competitors that are also in the News/Information Category. CNN Brand entity used prior to October 2018.
#1 IN UNIQUE VIDEO VIEWERS IN 2020 TO DATE
CNN’s long held lead in video continued throughout 2020, ranking #1 in each recorded month to date. Of news outlets, CNN has been ranked #1 in unique video viewers since the metric was introduced more than 4 years ago. With more unique video viewers and minutes spent than any other news publisher, CNN continued to deliver users the most engaging video experience. CNN was the fourth-largest entity within the overall digital video ranking in November 2020, following only YouTube, Hulu and Vevo, making CNN the largest original video publisher.
1. CNN.com – 65 Million Average Monthly Multiplatform Video Unique Viewers in 2020 to date
2. FoxNews.com – 34 million average monthly unique video viewers
3. NBCNews.com – 32 million average monthly unique video viewers
4. ABCNews.com Sites – 31 million average monthly unique video viewers
5. Yahoo News – 26 million average monthly unique video viewers
6. WashingtonPost.com – 19 million average monthly unique video viewers
Source: Comscore Video Metrix®, Custom-Defined List, Total Audience – Desktop Persons 2+ and Total Mobile Persons 18+ and OTT Persons 2+ where tagged, January-November 2020 monthly average, U.S. Based on CNN.com entity compared to a custom list of single brand competitors that are also in the News/Information Category. Also based on CNN.com entity compared to a custom list of single brand competitors that exclusively provide original video content. CNN Brand entity used prior to October 2018. Competitive claim outside of the news category is based on a custom list of single brand competitors from the Top 100 video properties list.
#1 IN MOBILE VISITORS FOR 2020
CNN’s 2020 monthly average mobile audience grew by 24% over 2019, placing it ahead of both second-place The New York Times by 41 million and third-place Fox News by 48 million mobile unique visitors on average.
1. CNN: 142 Million Monthly Average Mobile Unique Visitors in 2020
2. The New York Times Brand – 101 million average monthly unique visitors
3. FoxNews.com – 93 million average monthly unique visitors
4. WashingtonPost.com – 91 million average monthly unique visitors
5. NBCNews.com – 87 million average monthly unique visitors
6. USAToday.com – 79 million average monthly unique visitors
Source: Comscore Media Metrix® Multi-Platform, Custom-Defined List, Total Mobile Persons 13+, January – December 2020 monthly average, U.S. Based on CNN.com entity compared to a custom list of single brand competitors that are also in the News/Information Category. CNN Brand entity used prior to October 2018. Historical claim based on Comscore Mobile Metrix®, Custom-Defined List, Total Mobile Persons 13+, U.S. for October 2020 and prior months.
#1 IN YOUNG ADULTS REACH IN 2020
CNN was the #1 news outlet in unique multiplatform visitors between the ages of 18-34, with an average of 44 million per month in 2020 to date.
1. CNN: 43 Million Monthly Average Young Adults Unique Multiplatform Visitors in 2020
2. The New York Times Brand – 33 million average monthly young adults unique visitors
3. WashingtonPost.com – 27 million average monthly young adults unique visitors
4. NBCNews.com – 24 million average monthly young adults unique visitors
5. DailyMail.co.uk – 23 million average monthly young adults unique visitors
6. FoxNews.com – 22 million average monthly young adults unique visitors
Source: Comscore Media Metrix® Multi-Platform, Custom-Defined List, Digital Audience Persons 18-34, January 2020 – December 2020 monthly average, U.S. Based on CNN.com entity compared to a custom list of single brand competitors in the News/Information Category. CNN Brand entity used prior to October 2018.
#1 POLITICAL NEWS SOURCE IN 2020
CNN Politics maintained its #1 position in political news throughout every recorded month of 2020 to date, ranking ahead of all competitors, in its biggest year ever for audience.
1. CNN Politics: 81 Million Monthly Average Unique Visitors in 2020
2. TheHill.com – 50 million average monthly unique visitors
3. Politico.com – 48 million average monthly unique visitors
4. Fox News Politics – 35 million average monthly unique visitors
5. NBCNews.com Politics – 32 million average monthly unique visitors
6. MSNBC TV – 18 million average monthly unique visitors
Source: Comscore Media Metrix® Multi-Platform, News/Information – Politics, Total Digital Audience – Desktop 2+ and Total Mobile 13+, January 2020 – November 2020 monthly average, U.S.
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#1 IN GLOBAL DIGITAL NEWS IN OCTOBER 2020
CNN reached more global unique visitors than any other news platform in the world in October 2020, with 194 million unique multiplatform visitors – over 8 million unique visitors more than the nearest competitor, the BBC (October 2020 data is the most current available).
1. CNN.com – 194 Million Multiplatform Unique Visitors in October 2020
2. BBC – 186 million unique visitors
3. Yahoo News – 156 million unique visitors
4. DailyMail.co.uk – 130 million unique visitors
5. The New York Times Brand – 126 million unique visitors
Source: Comscore MMX® Multi-Platform, Custom-Defined List, Total Digital Audience, October 2020, Worldwide Rollup. Based on CNN.com entity compared to a custom list of single brand, English-language, global competitors in the News/Information Category, including The United States, Canada, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Chile, China, Colombia, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Norway, Singapore, Spain, Taiwan, United Kingdom and Vietnam. CNN Brand entity used prior to November 2018. (October 2020 data is the most current available).
#1 IN U.S. MULTIPLATFORM UNIQUE VISITORS IN NOVEMBER 2020
CNN saw 178 million unique multiplatform visitors domestically in November 2020, the second biggest month in CNN history behind March 2020.
1. CNN.com – 178 Million Multiplatform Unique Visitors in November 2020
2. The New York Times Brand – 133 million unique visitors
3. FoxNews.com – 130 million unique visitors
4. WashingtonPost.com – 118 million unique visitors
5. NBCNews.com – 114 million unique visitors
Source: Comscore Media Metrix® Multi-Platform, Custom-Defined List, Total Digital Audience – Desktop Persons 2+ and Total Mobile Persons 13+, November 2020, U.S. Based on CNN.com entity compared to a custom list of single brand competitors that are also in the News/Information Category. CNN Brand entity used prior to November 2018.
#1 IN MOBILE UNIQUE VISITORS IN NOVEMBER 2020
CNN saw 156 million mobile unique visitors in November 2020 – nearly two years (23rd month) in a row of more than 100 million unique visitors exclusively on mobile.
1. CNN.com – 156 Million Mobile Unique Visitors in November 2020
2. The New York Times Brand – 115 million mobile unique visitors
3. FoxNews.com – 106 million mobile unique visitors
4. WashingtonPost.com – 102 million mobile unique visitors
5. NBCNews.com – 98 million mobile unique visitors
Source: Comscore Media Metrix® Multi-Platform, Custom-Defined List, Total Mobile Persons 13+, November 2020, U.S. Based on CNN.com entity compared to a custom list of single brand competitors that are also in the News/Information Category. CNN Brand entity used prior to November 2018. Historical claim based on Comscore Mobile Metrix®, Custom-Defined List, Total Mobile Persons 13+, U.S. for October 2020 and prior months.
#1 IN UNIQUE VIDEO VIEWERS IN NOVEMBER 2020
CNN’s lead in video continued in November 2020 with 70 million unique video viewers. Of news outlets, CNN has been ranked #1 in unique video viewers since the metric was introduced more than 4 years ago. With more unique video viewers and minutes spent than on any other news publisher, CNN continued to deliver users the most engaging video experience. CNN was the fourth-largest entity within the overall digital video ranking in November 2020, following only YouTube, Hulu and Vevo, making CNN the largest original video publisher.
1. CNN.com – 70 Million Multiplatform Video Unique Viewers in November 2020
2. NBCNews.com – 39.1 million unique video viewers
3. FoxNews.com – 38.8 million unique video viewers
4. ABCNews.com Sites – 37 million unique video viewers
5. Yahoo News – 27 million unique video viewers
Source: Comscore Video Metrix®, Custom-Defined List, Total Audience – Desktop Persons 2+ and Total Mobile Persons 18+ and OTT Persons 2+ where tagged, November 2020, U.S. Based on CNN.com entity compared to a custom list of single brand competitors that are also in the News/Information Category. Also based on CNN.com entity compared to a custom list of single brand competitors that exclusively provide original video content. CNN Brand entity used prior to November 2018. Competitive claim outside of the news category is based on a custom list of single brand competitors from the Top 100 video properties list.
#1 IN MILLENNIAL REACH IN NOVEMBER 2020
CNN again ranked as the largest millennial news brand with 50 million unique millennial multiplatform visitors in November 2020 (millennial defined as users between the ages of 18-34).
1. CNN.com – 50 Million Millennial Unique Multiplatform Visitors in November 2020
2. The New York Times Brand – 42 million millennial unique visitors
3. WashingtonPost.com – 31 million millennial unique visitors
4. FoxNews.com – 25.9 million millennial unique visitors
5. NBCNews.com – 25.8 million millennial unique visitors
Source: Comscore Media Metrix® Multi-Platform, Custom-Defined List, Total Digital Audience Persons 18-34, November 2020, U.S. Based on CNN.com entity compared to a custom list of single brand competitors in the News/Information Category. CNN Brand entity used prior to November 2018.
#1 POLITICAL NEWS SOURCE IN NOVEMBER 2020
During the month of the 2020 US Election, CNN Politics ranked again as the #1 political news destination with 118 million multiplatform unique visitors – the biggest month in history for CNN Politics. CNN Politics has remained the #1 online political news outlet in unique visitors since January 2016 – nearly five years.
1. CNN Politics – 118 Million Multiplatform Unique Visitors in November 2020
2. Politico.com – 67 million unique visitors
3. Fox News Politics – 59 million unique visitors
4. TheHill.com – 57 million unique visitors
5. NBCNews.com Politics – 52 million unique visitors
Source: Comscore Media Metrix® Multi-Platform, News/Information – Politics, Total Digital Audience – Desktop 2+ and Total Mobile 13+, November 2020, U.S.
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