CNN’s Chris Cuomo Wins Key Ratings Demo in the Quarter For First Time Ever

For the first time ever, CNN’s Cuomo Prime Time was the most-watched cable news show in the valuable demographic of viewers age 25-54 for the first quarter of 2021. Cuomo was also CNN’s highest-rated show in both total viewers and in the demo for the quarter, according to data from Nielsen.

Cuomo drew an average 658,000 viewers in the demo in the first quarter, and almost 2.5 million viewers total. MSNBC’s The Rachel Maddow Show was second in the demo, with 619,000, and was the most-watched show overall in the quarter, averaging 3.73 million viewers total. CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360 was third in the demo, with 611,000 viewers, and nearly 2.3 million viewers total.

Notably, Cuomo had the most growth in cable news in app of prime time, up 66% in total viewers, and 50% in the demo, compared to the first quarter of 2020. The show also delivered CNN’s best overall rating in the 9 p.m. hour ever.

The win for host Chris Cuomo mirrors CNN’s similar win in the demo for the quarter. CNN dominated in the key demo in total day viewership in Q1, averaging 352,000, making it the most-watched network in the demo in all of cable and cable news for the second consecutive quarter. Fox was second, with 225,000, and MSNBC was third, with 219,000.