Trump Crazyness is Good for Rachel Maddow as Her Ratings Soar

Rachel Maddow topped the competition for the second straight week in its 9 p.m. slot for MSNBC (NBC Photo).

NEW YORK - As Donald Trump continued to immerse himself in scandal over his administration's possible collusion with Russia during his election and his baseless accusations of wiretapping by the Obama administration, one of the few winners was cable news and "The Rachel Maddow Show," in particular.  For the second week in a row, MSNBC’s “The Rachel Maddow Show” (M-F 9-10pm ET) was the number-one cable news show in the key 25-54 demo in the M-F 9-10 p.m. time period for the week of March 13, according to Nielsen.

“The Rachel Maddow Show” averaged 2.91 million total viewers and 756,000 A25-54 viewers last week (vs. CNN’s 1.2 million total viewers and 420,000 viewers A25-54, and FOX News’ 2.94 million total viewers and 604,000 viewers A25-54). This is the program’s best week ever in total viewers and the best week in A25-54 since October 27, 2008. Compared to the week of March 6, “The Rachel Maddow Show” was up +11% in total viewers and +21% in A25-54. Among all cable and broadcast networks, “The Rachel Maddow Show” ranked in the top 10 in the time period every day last week – finishing in the top 10 for 21 out of the previous 26 days.

Three additional MSNBC programs each topped CNN among the A25-54 demo: “All In with Chris Hayes” at 8pm, “The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell” at 10pm, and “The 11th Hour with Brian Williams” at 11pm. This was “The Last Word’s” best week ever in total viewers and the best week in A25-54 since November 5, 2012.

MSNBC also bested CNN among total viewers during full day (M-F 6am-2am), “Morning Joe” at 6am, “MSNBC Live with Stephanie Ruhle” at 9am, “Hardball with Chris Matthews” at 7pm, “All In with Chris Hayes,” “The Rachel Maddow Show,” “The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell,” and “The 11th Hour with Brian Williams.”

March 2017 to-date, MSNBC again continued its ratings climb in prime (M-F 8-11pm ET), ranking #2 among all cable networks in total viewers. MSNBC is the second fastest-growing cable network among all cable in weekday prime (behind MLB Network), up +72% in total viewers over the same period in March 2016 (vs. -45% for CNN and -12% for FOX News).

Greta Van Susteren Joins MSNBC

Greta Van Susteren (File photo).

LOS ANGELES - Veteran broadcaster Greta Van Susteren will join MSNBC, it was announced last week by Phil Griffin, President of MSNBC.

Van Susteren will host “For the Record with Greta,” which will air weeknights from 6:00 - 7:00 p.m. ET. The program will debut on Monday, January 9, based in Washington, D.C. It replaces the timeslot of Bloomberg’s political television show “With All Due Respect,” which ended in early December.

“For the Record with Greta” will provide news coverage and analysis of the day’s top headlines spanning politics and beyond. The early evening broadcast will build on MSNBC’s strategic shift to a breaking news focus during the day and, along with “MTP Daily” and “Hardball,” will provide one of the key bridges to primetime. MSNBC marked its most-watched year ever in 2016, and was the fastest growing top 100 cable network in weekday prime.

“Greta is a true pro with a proven record of tough journalism,” said Griffin. “Her broad range of experience and sharp news judgment will be of great value to MSNBC as we build on our momentum going into a new year and a new administration.”

“I’m thrilled to start my next chapter at MSNBC,” Van Susteren said. “The network is the right destination for the smart news and analysis I hope to deliver every day, and I look forward to joining the talented journalists and analysts I respect there.”

A 25-year cable news veteran, Van Susteren joins MSNBC from Fox News Channel, where she hosted “On the Record with Greta Van Susteren” for 14 years. Previously, Van Susteren spent more than a decade at CNN, where she served as a legal analyst and co-host of “Burden of Proof” and hosted the news program “The Point.” She is an experienced breaking news anchor and has traveled the world - including Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, North Korea, Sudan, and more - often with Presidents, Secretaries of State and Defense, and other leaders.

Van Susteren was part of the investigative team that won a first place National Headliner Award for the "Attack on America." Additionally, her legal analysis and contribution to the election coverage in 2000 earned her the American Bar Association’s Presidential Award for Excellence in Journalism. Prior to her career in journalism, Van Susteren was a criminal defense and civil trial attorney.

NBC News and MSNBC Beat its Competition on Election Night

NEW YORK – More Americans turned to NBC News and MSNBC combined for coverage of Decision Night in America than any other broadcast or cable television network. According to Nielsen Media Research data, the two networks averaged 17.1 million total viewers during primetime coverage of Election Night, including an average of 7.7 million viewers in the key news demographic of A25-54.

NBC led the broadcast networks across the board during its primetime coverage from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. ET. NBC averaged 11.2 million total viewers, outperforming ABC by 1.9 million (+21%) and CBS by 3.1 million (+38%). Among A25-54 viewers, NBC News averaged 5.3 million viewers, leading ABC by 1.5 million (+40%) and CBS by 2.2 million (+69%). In A18-49, NBC averaged 5.1 million, topping ABC by 1.6 million (+46%) and CBS by 2.1 million (+68%).

MSNBC’s “Election Night 2016” was the 3rd highest-ranking program in the network’s 20 year history with nearly 6 million total viewers. Compared to 2012, MSNBC’s Election Night programming was up +27% in total viewers. In A25-54, MSNBC’s primetime coverage was up +19% over 2012, averaging nearly 2.4 million viewers. The network’s live reporting from 11 p.m. ET to 12 a.m. ET marks the network’s 3rd highest-rated hour in network history among total viewers, with more than 6.8 million people tuning in.

“Morning Joe” grew by +49% in total viewers compared to 2012 and MSNBC’s dayside (9 a.m. ET to 5 p.m. ET) delivered a +43% increase in total viewers and +27% in A25-54 compared to 2012.

NBC News Digital saw 125 million video starts during Election Day on its owned properties, partners and across social media. It was also NBC News’s best day ever for on-site video starts.

Following Decision Night in America, NBC News is the most watched news organization of Election 2016. More Americans turned to NBC News and MSNBC combined for coverage of the Republican National Convention, Democratic National Convention, presidential and vice presidential debates, and Election Night. Among broadcast networks, NBC News swept Election 2016 primetime coverage in the news demo (note: NBC did not air the second presidential debate).

Election night coverage on the NBC broadcast network aired from 7 p.m. – 3:30 a.m. ET, led by “NBC Nightly News” anchor Lester Holt, “TODAY” co-host Savannah Guthrie, and “Meet the Press” moderator and NBC News political director Chuck Todd.  Holt, Guthrie, and Todd were joined by NBC News special correspondent Tom Brokaw, who has covered every presidential election since 1968.

MSNBC’s primetime political team kicked off at 6 p.m. ET on Election Night, with Rachel Maddow, Brian Williams, and Chris Matthews joined by the network’s deep bench of correspondents and contributors.

“NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt” expands to a full hour tonight on Wednesday, November 9.