CNN Delivers Strong Third Quarter Performance Across Platforms
+15% YEAR OVER YEAR GROWTH IN PRIMETIME TV PROGRAMMING
TOP 5 CABLE NETWORK FOR 17 QUARTERS AND 21 MONTHS RUNNING
CNN CONTINUES TO GROW SUBSCRIBERS WHILE ALSO BECOMING TOP U.S. NEWS ORGANIZATION ON YOUTUBE AND TIKTOK
NEW YORK, NY — (September 30, 2026) — CNN ended the third quarter of 2026 with strong audience growth and engagement across TV, digital and streaming platforms. CNN also continued to see momentum among digital subscriptions in a month driven by global breaking news and signature, original programming. Additionally, CNN surpassed its closest competition to become the #1 most-subscribed-to U.S. news organization on YouTube and the most followed on TikTok.
CNN continues to be one of the most-watched cable networks and in Q3 2026 ranked as a top 5 cable network in Total Day among P2+ for 17 consecutive quarters. CNN also ranked as a top 10 network among P25-54 for 12 consecutive quarters.
In addition, in September CNN ranked as a top 5 cable network in Total Day among P2+ for 21 consecutive months and in the top 10 among P25-54 for 9 consecutive months.
Compared to Q3 2025, CNN posted year-over-year growth in primetime performance across demos. M-Su Prime saw a +15% increase among P25-54 (92k to 106k) and was up +12% among P2+ (562k to 632k). M-F Prime was up +9% among P25-54 (109k to 119k) and up +13% among P2+ (610k to 692k). Total Day was also up +7% among P2+ (403k to 433k). CNN’s strong Primetime performance in the quarter carried into the weekend, posting double-digit year-over-year growth among P25-54 (+48%: 50k to 74k) and P2+ (+10%: 440k to 482k).
From a digital video perspective, live video drove strong year-over-year quarterly engagement gains, with live viewership up +25% and live video starts up +59% in Q3 2026, showing sustained demand around CNN’s core live-news offering.
Premium, distinctive programming helped drive the strong engagement across platforms in September. The CNN Special Event Farm Aid 2026: Music Festival Live delivered a worldwide reach of 8.05M people, up more than double (107%) from Farm Aid 2025. Compared to the prior 4 Saturdays on television, Farm Aid 2026 saw double-digit increases among both P25-54 (+48%: vs. 62k) and P2+ (+26%: vs. 442k). CNN & Variety Red Carpet Live: TV’s Biggest Night had a multiplatform worldwide reach of 12.74 million.
The season 5 premiere of Have I Got News for You (Sat, 9/12/26; 9p-10p), part of CNN’s topical entertainment programming block, ranked in the top 5 in all of cable among both P25-54 (#3) and P2+ (#4). This was HIGNFY’s highest P25-54 season premiere ever, up +14% from the season 4 premiere (1/31/26 at 9p; 173k vs.152k). Compared to last year’s fall season premiere (Season 3, 9/6/25), the Season 5 premiere was up by +175% among P25-54 (vs. 63k) and by +51% among P2+ (957k vs. 634k). Compared to the prior 4 Saturdays, the premiere saw a triple-digit increase among both P2+ (+214%: vs. 305k) and P25-54 (+162%: vs. 66k). Launch-to-date thru episode 2 (Sat, 9/12 – 9/19; 9p-10p) HIGNFY season 5 posts triple-digit increases vs. the prior 4 among both P2+ (+185%: 868k vs. 305k) and P25-54 (+120%: 145k vs. 66k). HIGNFY was also CNN’s top-rated program in September among both P25-54 and P2+.
Original reporting also drove new subscriptions, from a look at an America 250 celebration tied to President Trump to a Six Flags roller-coaster brain-injury investigation to Jake Tapper’s exclusive coverage of the escalation of ICE-violence in Minnesota earlier this year.
CNN’s distinct reporting on AI delivered scale, engagement, and subscriber value. Anderson Cooper’s interview with Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei led CNN’s September videos by time spent on its platforms. His companion interview with former Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon became CNN’s most-viewed YouTube video of the year and its most-shared video on Instagram and TikTok.
CNN achieved major milestones on social in September, becoming the U.S. news brand with the most subscribers on YouTube and followers on TikTok. Adding nearly one million YouTube subscribers this year alone, CNN now has 19.9 million YouTube subscribers and over 16 million followers on TikTok. The gains extended to social engagement across the board, with CNN drawing more YouTube views than any tracked news brand in September.
Year to date, CNN Podcasts have 83 million downloads and streams.
TV Source: The Nielsen Company Big Data + Panel data as of Sep-25 and 3Q25. Panel Only thru Aug-25 and 2Q25. Based on Live+7 blended with most current data, including Out of Home Viewing. Farm Aid claims based on Live+Same Day only. P2+ & P25-54 Average Audience (000s). Nielsen Month of Sep-26: 8/31/26 – 9/27/26. 3Q26: 6/29/26 – 9/27/26. Adult Swim and Nick-at-Nite Excluded from Total Day All of Cable Due to Only Airing in Prime Hours. Farm Aid P4: 8/29/26 -9/19/26. HIGNFY S5 P4: 8/15/26 – 9/5/26. HIGNFY top CNN program in Sep-26 claim excluded repeats.
Digital Source: Adobe Analytics
Podcast Source: Megaphone
Social Source: Rival IQ