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CNN Posts Best DNC Day 1 Results
by Wayne Friedman , July 26, 2016
CNN witnessed a dramatic rise in TV ratings for the first night of the Democratic National Convention -- posting the strongest results of all TV networks during prime time.
CNN grabbed a Nielsen average 5.1 million viewers from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. -- 70% higher versus the first night of the DNC event in 2012. MSNBC was up 14% to 3.75 million, edging out Fox News Channel, which earned 3.73 million. Fox improved 48% overall from the same night four years ago.
In the 10 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. time period, where all cable and broadcast networks competed with each other with respective DNC coverage, CNN again dominated with 6.2 million viewers. This is up 54% from the 10 p.m. to 11 p.m. period in 2012.
MSNBC was next with 4.6 million (up 12% from four years ago). Its sister network NBC was at 4.3 million (down 14%). ABC was at 4.1 million (gaining 28%), followed by Fox News Channel at 3.3 million (up 40%); and CBS with 3.21 million (slipping 2%).
For the three-hour prime-time period, CNN also was tops for key TV news viewers, 25-54, averaging 1.7 million. MSNBC was next at 1.1 million, followed by Fox News with 858,000.
On the social media front, 3.3 million tweets were sent by 693,000 people for the first night of the DNC event, according to Nielsen Twitter TV Ratings.
Twitter activity spiked at 10:21 p.m. ET, when 30,400 tweets were sent in one minute following Michelle Obama's speech.
cable tv, media measurement, politics, social media, television, tv
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