Ceremonies commemorating the 20th anniversary of 9/11 at the memorial sites of the World Trade Center area in New York, the Pentagon in Washington D.C. and Shanksville, Pennsylvania were covered by multiple networks.
On the cable front, Fox News Channel led all in coverage, well above their cable news competition. As the following is noted, FNC was ahead in each hour according to key figures tabulated by Nielsen Media Research:
7:00 a.m.-8:00 a.m.
FNC: 1.258 million total viewers; 179,000 adults 25-54
CNN: 0.369 million total viewers
MSNBC. 0.314 million total viewers; 48,000 adults 25-54
8:00 a.m.-9:00 a.m.
FNC: 1.891 million total viewers; 339,000 adults 25-54
CNN: 0.479 million total viewers
MSNBC. 0.524 million total viewers; 58,000 adults 25-54
9:00 a.m.-10:00 a.m.
FNC: 1.771 million total viewers; 306,000 adults 25-54
CNN: 0.616 million total viewers
MSNBC. 0.640 million total viewers; 59,000 adults 25-54
10:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m.
FNC: 1.770 million total viewers; 285,000 adults 25-54
CNN: 0.704 million total viewers
MSNBC. 0.733 million total viewers; 77,000 adults 25-54
11:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.
FNC: 1.411 million total viewers; 198,000 adults 25-54
CNN: N/A
MSNBC. 0.862 million total viewers; 78,000 adults 25-54
12:00 p.m.-1:00 p.m.
FNC: 1.242 million total viewers; 230,000 adults 25-54
CNN: N/A
MSNBC. 0.813 million total viewers; 74,000 adults 25-54
History Channel aired 9/11 programming throughout the day, highlighted by the premiere of two new two-hour specials; “Four Flights” (1.166 million viewers; 370,000 adults 25-54) and “I Was There” (1.054 million viewers; 400,000 adults 25-54) — both were cable’s top non-sports telecasts of Saturday, Sep. 11, based on 25-54.
Within a four-week span, HBO aired Spike Lee’s eight-hour documentary “NYC Epicenters 9/11 —> 2021½“, with the conclusion on Saturday, Sep. 11. Its original airings’ figures were, as follows:
Part 1 — Sun. Aug. 22: 212,000 viewers; 90,000 adults 25-54
Part 2 — Sun. Aug. 29: 163,000 viewers; 73,000 adults 25-54
Part 3 — Sun. Sep. 5: 200,000 viewers; 77,000 adults 25-54
Part 4 — Sat. Sep. 11: 237,000 viewers; 120,000 adults 25-54
Note: The above data does not reflect the cumulative viewership of the episodes’ re-airings on the various HBO network and streaming platforms.
Over on the broadcast networks, NBC’s special telecast of “Saturday TODAY” (with Savannah Guthrie, Hoda Kotb and Lester Holt) easily bested ABC’s “Good Morning America Saturday” in both total viewers — 1.71 million vs. 1.24 million — and in the key 25-54 demo, with NBC nearly doubling ABC: 438,000, to 243,000. (Data for CBS and the Fox broadcast network were unavailable.)
Here are the cable news averages for September 6-12, 2021.
Total Day (September 6-12 @ 6 a.m.-5:59 a.m.)
- Fox News Channel: 1.378 million viewers; 226,000 adults 25-54
- MSNBC: 0.650 million viewers; 78,000 adults 25-54
- CNN: 0.532 million viewers; 1177,000 adults 25-54
- HLN: 0.200 million viewers; 65,000 adults 25-54
- CNBC: 0.131 million viewers; 32,000 adults 25-54
- Newsmax: 0.129 million viewers; 18,000 adults 25-54
- The Weather Channel: 0.127 million viewers; 28,000 adults 25-54
- Fox Business Network: 0.076 million viewers; 9,000 adults 25-54
Prime Time (September 6-11 @ 8-11 p.m.; September 12 @ 7-11 p.m.)
- Fox News Channel: 2.268 million viewers; 359,000 adults 25-54
- MSNBC: 1.101 million viewers; 138,000 adults 25-54
- CNN: 0.715 million viewers; 169,000 adults 25-54
- HLN: 0.223 million viewers; 66,000 adults 25-54
- CNBC: 0.188 million viewers; 61,000 adults 25-54
- Newsmax: 0.156 million viewers; 29,000 adults 25-54
- The Weather Channel: 0.152 million viewers; 27,000 adults 25-54
- Fox Business Network: 0.044 million viewers; 7,000 adults 25-54
Top 10 most-watched cable news programs (and the top MSNBC and CNN programs with their respective associated ranks) in total viewers:
1. The Five (FOXNC, Thu. 9/9/2021 5:28 PM, 32 min.) 3.688 million viewers
2. Tucker Carlson Tonight (FOXNC, Thu. 9/9/2021 8:00 PM, 60 min.) 3.139 million viewers
3. Hannity (FOXNC, Tue. 9/7/2021 9:00 PM, 60 min.) 3.085 million viewers
4. Hannity (FOXNC, Wed. 9/8/2021 9:00 PM, 60 min.) 3.073 million viewers
5. Tucker Carlson Tonight (FOXNC, Tue. 9/7/2021 8:00 PM, 60 min.) 3.013 million viewers
6. The Five (FOXNC, Tue. 9/7/2021 5:00 PM, 60 min.) 3.003 million viewers
7. Tucker Carlson Tonight (FOXNC, Wed. 9/8/2021 8:00 PM, 60 min.) 2.971 million viewers
8. The Five (FOXNC, Wed. 9/8/2021 5:00 PM, 60 min.) 2.962 million viewers
9. Hannity (FOXNC, Thu. 9/9/2021 9:00 PM, 60 min.) 2.958 million viewers
10. The Five (FOXNC, Fri. 9/10/2021 5:00 PM, 60 min.) 2.938 million viewers
17. Rachel Maddow Show (MSNBC, Tue. 9/7/2021 9:00 PM, 60 min.) 2.323 million viewers
139. The Lead With Jake Tapper (CNN, Thu. 9/9/2021 5:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.991 million viewers
Top 10 cable news programs (and the top MSNBC, CNN and HLN programs with their respective associated ranks) among adults 25-54:
1. The Five (FOXNC, Thu. 9/9/2021 5:28 PM, 32 min.) 0.535 million adults 25-54
2. Tucker Carlson Tonight (FOXNC, Tue. 9/7/2021 8:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.528 million adults 25-54
3. Tucker Carlson Tonight (FOXNC, Thu. 9/9/2021 8:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.523 million adults 25-54
4. Hannity (FOXNC, Tue. 9/7/2021 9:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.503 million adults 25-54
5. The Ingraham Angle (FOXNC, Tue. 9/7/2021 10:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.483 million adults 25-54
6. The Ingraham Angle (FOXNC, Thu. 9/9/2021 10:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.480 million adults 25-54
7. Hannity (FOXNC, Thu. 9/9/2021 9:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.474 million adults 25-54
8. Tucker Carlson Tonight (FOXNC, Wed. 9/8/2021 8:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.471 million adults 25-54
9. Hannity (FOXNC, Wed. 9/8/2021 9:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.468 million adults 25-54
10. The Five (FOXNC, Tue. 9/7/2021 5:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.442 million adults 25-54
27. Rachel Maddow Show (MSNBC, Thu. 9/9/2021 9:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.316 million adults 25-54
63. Anderson Cooper 360 (CNN, Wed. 9/8/2021 8:00 PM, 60 min.) 0.249 million adults 25-54
167. Forensic Files “Chief Evidence” (HLN, Wed. 9/8/2021 12:30 AM, 30 min.) 0.149 million adults 25-54
Source: Live+Same Day data, Nielsen Media Research