TV Ratings: Fox News Sees Boosts in New Lineup — But Maddow Tops Kelly in Demo

The first day of Fox News Channel’s new primetime lineup saw boosted victories for much of the block — with the 7 to 11 p.m. hours up from their comparable showings in the third quarter.

FNC’s tinkered lineup included the addition of Megyn Kelly‘s The Kelly File at 9 p.m., as well as new hours for Greta Van Susteren and Sean Hannity. (It was business as usual for top-rated Bill O’Reilly.) All telecasts were up in total viewers compared to Q3, though Hannity and Kelly saw small dips in the demo. Van Susteren, however, was a winner on both counts. Her new 7 p.m. time slot was up a whopping 38 percent over Shepard Smith‘s recent showing among adults 25-54.

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The Kelly File, the night’s most high-profile launch, averaged 2.066 million viewers and 289,000 adults 25-54. Viewership was up a solid 22 percent from Hannity’s recent average in the hour — but 9 percent shy in the targeted demo. And while it was enough to maintain a clear advantage over the competition in total viewers, MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow Show topped Kelly in the demo by a margin of nearly 10,000 viewers.

MSNBC saw impressive demo bumps throughout the night, also besting FNC in the demo at 7 p.m. with Chris Matthews and tying the net at 10 p.m. with Lawrence O’Donnell.

Hannity lost little of his audience in the move to 10 p.m. The show brought in 1.522 million viewers — down from the recent 1.689 million average — but his first demo showing dipped. The 251,000 adults 25-54 was off from his Q3 average (316,000) and Van Susteren’s recent showing (274,000).

All told, the four-hour block’s averages (2.059 million viewers, 318,547 adults 25-54) were up a respective 15 and 6 percent.

Primetime, of course, was not the only part of the FNC lineup that changed on Monday. Shepard Smith Reporting debuted in the 3 p.m. hour with an average 1.436 million viewers and 250,036 adults 25-54. Both figures were up a respective 33 percent and 34 percent from his old 3 p.m. broadcast — and in-line with his Q3 showing in the 7 p.m. hour.

As is always the case with cable news, first outings are hard to assess in the ratings, with numbers fluctuating throughout the week.