Rachel Maddow Whomps Megyn Kelly’s Premiere On Fox News

Posted by on October 8, 2013 at 8:31 pm. 37 Comments :

Last night Fox News debuted a new primetime lineup. It was the first time they had altered their schedule in more than a decade. They heavily promoted the changes and the new hosts for weeks. And on the the big night, when most new programs enjoy a ratings bump due to viewers sampling the new fare, Fox News did not get what they must have been expecting.

The top billing for the night went to Megyn Kelly, whose “Kelly File” has been eagerly anticipated by Foxophiles and received massive PR in advance of the debut. Unfortunately for her, she came in second to MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow in the key 25-54 year old demographic.

Rachel Maddow
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It would be bad enough for a Fox host to lose to an MSNBC show under ordinary circumstances, but to trail on the one night that ought to have been a runaway victory is a major embarrassment for Kelly and Fox. There were no extenuating circumstances that might have contributed to an unexpected win for Maddow. For instance, she did not have an exclusive interview with President Obama wherein he announced that he really was born in Kenya after all. And Kelly’s show had booked the GOP flavor of the week, Sen. Ted Cruz (TX-Tea Party), as her first guest, so she ought to have been well positioned to draw in the Fox fanatics in bulk. But it was not to be.

What’s more, Greta Van Susteren, who had moved from 10:00pm to 7:00pm, lost to MSNBC’s Chris Matthews. And Sean Hannity, who lost his 9:00pm slot to Kelly and took over the 10:00pm time that Van Susteren vacated, could only manage a tie with MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell. The only win for Fox the whole night was by their perennial top dog, Bill O’Reilly, who bested Chris Hayes, the newest MSNBC host who has yet to find an audience.

These dismal performances by Fox programs are all the worse because the network had poured so much money and promotional muscle into the evening. It was their intent to inject new blood into the schedule in order to attract the younger, advertiser-favored demos that have avoided Fox like the plague. That goal was clearly not met – at least on the debut. And just to rub it in, MSNBC achieved their ratings victories with the same old shows they’ve had on for years and no extra promotion.

Rest assured that Fox programming executives are already huddling to figure out what went wrong and how to correct it. Kelly and the others may yet return to their perches atop the ratings tree. But they will still have little influence over the broader television audience who recognize Fox for what it is: the PR division of the Republican Party and the Tea Party cheerleading squad. Remember, Fox’s top rated programs only reach 1% of the American people, and the garbage that they ingest (see Fox Nation vs. Reality) just makes them ignorant, ineffectual, and filled with ghastly surprise when they lose elections.

[Follow Up: 10/27/2013] It is now three weeks since this article was published and I still get commenters giddily noting that Kelly’s ratings improved on subsequent nights. SO F**KING WHAT? This article is about the premiere episode and it even notes that her ratings may improve later. These FoxPods just can’t seem to focus on single topic.

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37 thoughts on “Rachel Maddow Whomps Megyn Kelly’s Premiere On Fox News”

  1. I had read earliet today that Kelly beat the pants off Maddow. When I read it, I couldn’t believe it, and I was right not to. Thanks, for dispensing accurate information, Mark. Tweeted and posted to Facebook.

    • I had read the same news that Kelly killed all the competition. If Fox wants younger viewers, headlining a Tea Party leader isn’t the road there. I know Fox doesn’t believe in polls though

  3. The reality is that the whomping was anything but.

    I dislike Fox News greatly, but playing games and pretending that the ratings showed anything but the need for MSNBC to do some serious work on their lineup disingenuous to say the least.

    The breakdown was as follows-

    The overall (P2+) ratings:
    The Kelly File – 2,066,000
    Rachel Maddow Show – 997,000

    The 25-54 demo:
    The Kelly File – 289,000
    Rachel Maddow Show – 299,000

    The 35-64 numbers:
    The Kelly File – 760,000
    Rachel Maddow Show – 425,000

    http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2013/10/08/cable-news-ratings-for-monday-october-7-2013/207444/

    The other “whompings” listed in the piece were of about the same level. Large losses in the overall ratings, losses in the 35-64 ratings, and only narrow wins in the 25-54 “money” demo. The Republicans and the Tea Party suffered greatly (especially in 2012) from living in their own little bubble world for the last few years. Learning from the delusional mistakes of others rather than emulating them is a sign of intelligence.

    Let’s try to be the intelligent ones here and not pretend that a dismal showing is instead some massive, dominating victory.

    • What I wrote is 100% correct. Maddow beat Kelly in the 25-54 demo. That is the demo that advertisers care about and is the measure of a program’s viability. It is also the demo that Fox specifically said they were trying to shore up when they promoted Kelly to primetime. There is no way they can view this as a positive launch.

      And after working 14 years in television media research, I never heard anyone cite the 35-64 demo, except perhaps in desperation. On the other, the 18-34 demo was often cited as an indicator of future trends. MSNBC is number one in the 18-34 demo.

      Copying and pasting raw data without context or an understanding of the TV market is not a display of intelligence. I promise you, Rachel and her staff celebrated when they got these numbers. Kelly’s people panicked.

      • And yet the numbers on the link provided by Jerry (tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com) cite the 35-64 demo you’ve never heard before. Interesting.

        Jerry is correct: minor victories for MSNBC in the 25-54 demo but sorely defeated in overall viewers. Not good for MSNBC.

        Furthermore, please provide a link to data supporting your claim that MSNBC is number one in the 18-34 demo. I’ve never heard that before.

        Thanks!

    • Did I read those numbers correctly? Rachel came out on top on the 25-54 demo by…ahem…10,000 viewers. And you’re calling that a “whomping”? Dude, you’re so funny.

    • Net 9PM P2+ (000s 25-54 (000s) 35-64 (000s)
      FOXN KELLY FILE, THE 3041 401 1055
      CNN PIERS MORGAN LIVE 425 79 152
      MSNBC Rachel Maddow Show 941 190 408

      looks like after about a month kelly is still beating the **** out of cnn and msnbc

  4. ……uh oh…..just found this:

    You seem to be forgetting the progressive left coast which views Megyns repeat in their prime time.

    Maddow beats Megyn in the Demo (but not in totals) by 10,000 viewers. However, Megyn destroys Maddow in the Demo of the repeat (which runs during left-coast prime time) by a crushing 142,000…

    Grid Total…including one repeat:

    Demo:
    Megyn: 569K
    Maddow: 437K

    Totals:
    Megyn: 2866K
    Maddow: 1393K

    OUCH! Your assurances of celebrations and panicking might need to be reversed.

    • TV programmers do not base their assessment of success on the performance of reruns. That’s a tactic that weak networks use to make themselves look better when their first-run broadcasts fail. And no matter how you spin it, Kelly’s producers cannot be happy with their program trailing Maddow in its debut slot. Fox is the top-rated cable news network and its brightest new star couldn’t nail a demo victory on its premiere despite massive promotion. Ouch, indeed.

      • The first day’s ratings? You’re getting all excited about one day’s ratings??

        Cool your jets, son. This is a marathon, not a 40-yard dash.

      • Damn, I was hoping that would be a worthwhile tactic for MSNBC, CNN, Al what’s it name, and all of the other weaklings. BTW, the big ouch was the second night, and the third, and the fourth……….Maddow should check if NBC has early retirement because she might get a sore neck looking up to “leggy Meggy” all the time…. Cheers

    • No spin. And it doesn’t change what happened on premiere night. I wrote in the article that Fox’s numbers may come back up. So I’m right again.

      • Uh huh. You wrote half a sentence that acknowledged that FNC’s numbers could go back up. The rest of your screed was just…well, screed.

        Shall we go down memory lane? You wrote a bunch of columns earlier this year that crowed over how FNC “viewers were leaving in droves”.

        And guess what? The ratings went back up. And MSNBC’s ratings sank like a stone.

        Ratings go up, they go down. That’s the nature of the beast. But overall, Fox News is still kicking the competition’s collective butts nearly every night. And Rachel won’t be laughing as nearly as much as you would like.

    • Tuesday night’s ratings?

      Overall (P2) ratings:
      The Kelly File – 2,768,000
      Rachel Maddow Show – 1,082,000

      25-54 ratings:
      The Kelly File – 623,000
      Rachel Maddow Show – 291,000

      35-64 ratings:
      The Kelly File – 1,149,000
      Rachel Maddow Show – 494,000

      Pretending that is some great victory may be a tad harder to pull off. Like I said, MSNBC needs to do something serious with its lineup and presentation. They’ve really fallen hard in the last few years. Pretending that there isn’t a problem and pretending that they’re “winning” major victories in their time slots because of the occasional slim lead in some advertiser money demo, especially when Fox News is winning by having the bigger bullhorn to propel lies with, is foolish.

      What is it that that they say about addicts and others with certain issues? The first step to fixing the problem is admitting that there is one.

  6. Sorry-to be continued:

    “In her second night on Fox News’ new primetime lineup, Megyn Kelly clocked the highest adults 25-54 rating across all of cable news, building on her Bill O’Reilly lead-in. Kelly averaged 623,000 demo viewers and 2.8 million viewers overall”

  7. Don’t forget Megan lost viewers to Monday night Football, but it must have been an over site on your part Mark ? Right

  8. Hmm….that was Kelly’s first night, yet her second night left Maddow in the dust by 116%. They are totally two separate people and at the end of the day, Kelly will be the one to keep the high ratings, simply by being the truth teller. Telling the entire truth, and the opinions of that truth from both sides of the isle will be the winner every time, hands down. I have not seen Maddow invite opposing views on her show. And, in my humble opinion that is because she can not defend her “facts” (and/or half truths) as SHE sees them.

    • “Kelly will be the one to keep the high ratings, simply by being the truth teller.”

      I’m sorry, but I just can’t make it past that point. The fits of laughter and tears in my eyes prevent me from reading any further. A Fox News host relying on the truth to maintain high ratings? That’s a good one.

      • Fox viewers love having their preconceived and usually bigotted notions affirmed by the factoids they are spoon fed every night. But that isn’t the main reason they tune in to see mean-girl Megyn. It would have been more accurate if it said Kelly will be the one to keep the high ratings, simply by showing her legs.

        • “…usually bigotted notions…”

          Lie. And you can’t spell, either.

  9. This is what happened the next night when one guy found out that Megyn Kelly was on — and that guy told two friends and that guy told two friends. Listen, Mark. My website is pretty jokey but you’re serious — yikes! When I try to be dumb I can’t be dumber than what you wrote or tried to spin. So this is the best I could do. Note that Rachel’s neck mole is enhanced for effect. http://thedamienzone.com/2013/10/15/megyn-kelly-ratings-beat-maddow-big-time-and-shes-gorgeous/

    • Here is a quote from the article you linked:

      “Americans have a number of ways to replace canceled health coverage, including a new option that offers many the chance to actually save money on it, according to experts.”

      Oh yeah…real evil. How dare he implement a policy that will help people who are currently insured save money, and make insurance accessible to millions who don’t presently have it.

  11. That whomping didn’t last long did it. Megyn Kelly is intelligent and honest and not just throwing up the party talking points like Maddow. Plus have you looked at the two side by side.

  12. A monkey at the zoo could figure out that Megyn Kelly was going to beat Rachel Maddow in the ratings wars. Admit-tingly, it was a little surprising that Kelly did not win her time slot on her debut night but that quickly changed starting on, hmmmm, let me think, ohh yeah, DAY 2. MSNBC is only on the air because of the way the cable television revenue sharing agreement, is designed. If they had to operate just on Ad Revenue they would have been off the air 5-7 years ago and also CNN for that matter. When you get your ass kicked by the O’Reilly Factor re-run at 11:00 pm, by almost a 3-1 margin, that just sad, lol. To be fair the way that cable television is designed is a benefit to the viewer because if cable channels had to operate as I eluded to above then we would not have about half the cable channels we all know and love.

  13. Check out my Google + page regarding some Fox News issues. You will be surprised to learn what is not known (i.e. anchor).

  14. Mark you are a sore loser. I like some shows on MSNBC, Fox, and CNN, they all have some great insight on different political opinions. But your article and is so outlandisly misleading, making the average low information person believe that MSNBC is kicking the pants off Fox is an outright lie. I guess you can spin the numbers and make anybody look like a winner.

  15. What an idiot article
    Kelly rules!
    Check all ratings since

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