- The Washington Times - Wednesday, April 1, 2015

Fox News is the most watched cable news channel for the 159th month in a row, according to new Nielsen numbers. That means that broadcast rivals have not topped the network for over 13 years.

The appeal appears to go beyond public affairs and current events, though. Fox News also ranks fourth on the list of all cable offerings, only eclipsed by ESPN in first place, followed by TBS and USA. Alas, rivals CNN and MSNBC were not able to “crack the top 25 in primetime,” an analyst says.

Numbers reveal all: Fox News typically averages 1.7 million viewers in the coveted primetime arena, compared to 535,000 for CNN and 536,000 for MSNBC, according to Nielsen.

As an aside and in fairness, CNN is actually enjoying a larger audience these days, up 11 percent in primetime and 22 percent in daytime over the last year.

Meanwhile, the lead shows on Fox News continue their reign. The O’Reilly Factor has been in first place for 180 months in its time slot; Special Report with Bret Baier is marking 75 consecutive months at No. 1. The Five has been first in its time slot for 45 consecutive months.

• Jennifer Harper can be reached at jharper@washingtontimes.com.

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