Fox News made cable news history with its Tuesday virtual town hall with President Trump and the White House's task force by being the most watched ever in cable news.
The virtual town hall was moderated by anchors Bill Hemmer and Harris Faulkner and also featured Vice President Mike Pence, Dr. Deborah Birx, and Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams. The town hall, which aired from 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. ET, netted an average of 4.4 million viewers and 1 million in the 25-54 age demographic, dominating both CNN and MSNBC combined in both total viewers and the 25-54 demo, according to Nielsen Media Research.
CNN was in second place for both categories in the same timeframe, getting an average 2.1 million total viewers and 643,000 for the 25-54 demo. MSNBC was third, having an average of 2 million total viewers and 345,000 in the age demo.
Fox News continued to hold the first place spot for the White House's daily task force press conference, which took place a few hours later, from 5:30-6:30 p.m. ET. The network had an average 5.5 million total viewers and 1.1 million in the 25-54 demo.
CNN averaged 3.1 million and 975,000, respectively. MSNBC averaged 2.4 million and 423,000 for the same press conference.
The high ratings come as Fox News continues to be number one in total viewership and in the key demographic for coverage of the coronavirus pandemic. The network is the most-watched network in all of cable across total day for 11 consecutive weeks.
It was announced at the press conference that those who have recently traveled to New York should self-quarantine for 14 days as there is a high chance they were exposed to the Wuhan coronavirus.
"We’re starting to see new cases across Long Island that suggest people have left the city," Dr. Birx said.