Cable news giant CNN has seen its ratings decline in recent weeks under newly appointed network president Chris Licht, according to the latest Nielsen ratings. CNN’s viewership was down during the month of June compared to the previous month — despite the network’s intensive coverage of the ongoing House committee hearings on the January 6, 2021 riots at the US Capitol. In June, CNN’s primetime series averaged 654,000 total viewers per night. Of those viewers, just 148,000 are between the ages of 25 and 54 — the key demographic most sought after by advertisers. The numbers represent a 1 percent drop compared to May, according to The Daily Beast. CNN’s daily lineup is also hemorrhaging viewers, the latest figures show. The network’s audience tuned in fell 3% month-over-month in June to 487,000 total daily viewers — as well as 2% to 104,000 viewers in the 25-54 demographic. CNN’s ratings have fallen despite intense focus on the ongoing House committee hearings on the riots on Capitol Hill on January 6, 2021. The Washington Post via Getty Im During the week of June 13 through June 19, when the network heavily focused its coverage on the Jan. 6 hearings, it averaged just 480,000 total viewers — down 13 percent from May’s numbers. The week of June 13 represented CNN’s lowest daily audience draw since November 2015. In contrast, MSNBC, which is CNN’s main competition for liberal viewers, had a banner month in June as viewers flocked to the Comcast-owned complex for coverage and analysis of House hearings. MSNBC’s daily coverage of the hearings averaged 767,000 viewers, which was the second most among all basic cable channels. This is a 21% increase from May’s average daily viewership. The network also boasts a total audience of 3 million people who tuned in to watch the auditions. MSNBC primetime also benefited from the Jan. 6 drama, as the network averaged 1.28 million viewers, good for second place. Overall, MSNBC saw a 30% boost in its primetime audience as well as a 23% increase in daytime viewers for the month of June. Both MSNBC and CNN follow cable news kingpin Fox News Channel, which is owned by Fox Corp., the sister company of The Post’s parent News Corp. Licht was tapped to lead CNN, succeeding Jeff Zucker, who resigned just weeks before the newly formed Discovery entity Warner Bros. take the reins of the network and its sister media properties. The former executive producer of Stephen Colbert’s late night show on CBS wants to move CNN away from partisan and commentary and more toward hard news. According to the online news site Mediaite, Licht instructed CNN producers to avoid describing former President Donald Trump’s allegations of voter fraud during the 2020 election as “the big lie.” The CNN president suggested that the shows should instead refer to Trump’s dismissed claims as “Trump’s election lie” or “election lies.” Licht argued that using the phrase “the big lie” essentially parrots the Democratic Party’s “branding” and hurts CNN’s objectivity in covering the issue. Licht is also reportedly watching CNN’s top anchors — including personalities like Brian Stelter and Jim Acosta — to see if they can stick to the network’s new emphasis on less partisan coverage. Anchors unable to adjust to CNN’s change in direction could be forced out. In addition, Licht asked CNN producers to reduce the network’s use of “breaking news” banners during live coverage — a tactic adopted under Zucker’s watch.
