CNN was the most-watched network on television from
8-12:30a on Election Night with 13.3 million total viewers, ABC
followed with 12.5 million, NBC had 11.9 million, Telemundo had 8.5
million, FNC posted 8.1 million, CBS averaged 7.5 million, MSBNC had
6.4 million and FOX posted 4.7 million.
CNN’s 2008 Election Night coverage dominated the
competition and resulted in its highest primetime ratings in the
network’s 28-year history. CNN topped the cable news competition with an average of 12.3 million total
viewers tuning in during primetime (8-11p), a 36% advantage over FNC’s
9 million and an impressive 109% lead over MSNBC’s 5.9 million. Among
adults 25-54, CNN was also #1 with 5.8 million, a 48% advantage over
FNC’s 3.9 million and 119% lead over MSNBC’s 2.7 million demo viewers.
Among younger viewers18-34, CNN was also first with 3.4 million, FNC
placed second with 1.8 million and MSNBC was third with 1.4 million.
CNN had the largest gains in prime time compared to
2004 in 25-54, doubling its audience, up 102%, while FNC only increased
4% and MSNBC was up 87%. (This was also reflected in total day where
CNN grew the most among 25-54, up 97%, while FNC declined -16% and
MSNBC was up 94%.)
CNN.com delivered the largest daily audience in its
history with 30 million unique visitors on Election Day, more than doubling
the previous record of 13.4 million generated on Super Tuesday of
this year.
CNN.com Live, the Internet's only multi-stream,
live video news service, smashed previous records by serving 5.3
million live streams on Election Day. The number of live video streams
served by CNN.com on Election Day is nearly triple that of its previous
daily streaming record, which was set on September 1, 2008 - the first
day of the RNC and the day Hurricane Gustav made landfall. CNN.com also
served an additional 6.8 million on-demand video streams on Nov. 4.
CNN.com generated 282.5 million page views, also
marking the highest day in the site's history and more than doubling
its previous record of 103.2 million page views from Super Tuesday of
this year. On Election Day, CNN.com's traffic peaked during the 9pm ET
hour with 35.6 million page views. CNNPolitics.com also saw
record-breaking traffic on Election Day, generating 30.1 million page
views - a 43% increase over its previous record. Furthermore, CNN.com's
special Election Section alone generated 103.2 million page views. The
Political Ticker, the No. 1 political news blog according to Nielsen
Online, generated 8.7 million page views, scoring its second best day
ever. (Source: Omniture SiteCatalyst, global)
Election Night 2008
8p-11p P2+
P18-34 P18-49 P25-54
CNN 12.292
3.374 6.512 5.817
FXNC
9.027 1.823 4.042 3.922
MSNBC 5.888
1.382 2.672 2.662
Election Night 2008
7p-1a P2+
P18-34 P18-49 P25-54
CNN 11.940
3.517 6.575 5.826
FXNC
7.516 1.518 3.333 3.246
MSNBC 5.821
1.495 2.803 2.635