While most Americans kicked off their New Year with fireworks, celebrations, and hope, CNN kicked off theirs with plummeting viewership and stunning losses.
According to the Nielsen Media viewership report, the liberal cable news network suffered an 80 percent drop in total audience viewership since January 2021.
Between January 4-10 in 2021, CNN averaged 2.7 million viewers. However, between January 4-10 in 2022, CNN dropped to 548,000 viewers, an 80 percent nosedive.
CNN suffered stunning viewership drops in multiple categories and demographics.
Among CNN’s 25- to 54-year-old viewers, the network averaged 113,000 viewers last week, an 86 percent drop from January 2021. A year ago, the network averaged 822,000 viewers from the 24- to 52-year-old age demographics.
Among viewers 18 to 49 years old, the network lost 551,000 since January 2021, a 90 percent drop.
In 2021, CNN’s primetime hours averaged 4.2 million viewers during the first week of last year, compared to 705,000 last week, an 83 percent drop.
Fox News surpassed both CNN’s and MSNBC’s viewership combined, averaging 1.4 million viewers last week.
CNN has recently suffered a series of scandals and setbacks. Most notably, the network fired former anchor Chris Cuomo in December for reportedly misusing the network’s resources to advise his brother, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, D-N.Y., on how to handle the sexual assault allegations made against him from a public relations perspective.
CNN President Jeff Zucker also announced last year that he would step down from his position at the end of 2021, but he has yet to do so. Zucker has emphasized that he is not being forced out amid plummeting ratings, and that the decision to leave was his own.