One of the things that makes Twitter different is that it’s a world-wide conversation, even if we think the topics are purely domestic. That makes the Twitter ratings not just an adjunct to the Nielsen ratings but a window into a different world. Piers Morgan, for example, has a world-wide presence on CNN and other platforms, and so he often has the “best day” on Twitter because of that world-wide conversation.
But I want to mention another topic which is interesting — the #Blackfish documentary CNN ran. It’s been run in the UK as well, and there’s currently a large conversation on Twitter amongst UK viewers. It doesn’t show up as any particular show in the ratings, but it affects CNN in general and makes #blackfish the most talked about tag. I’m going to start filtering out #blackfish shortly because the conversation isn’t about CNN any more, but it’s an interesting reflection of how a conversation can take on a life of its own.
You can see any number of articles on the web about “the second screen” — essentially how viewers will have a (e.g.) tablet in hand monitoring social media while viewing a TV program. I think that paradigm is very narrow-sighted: real conversations can linger on long after that. If you’re a network, and want to monetize this, you need to find a way to keep your advertisers in the conversation as it winds on. One way, of course, is to advertise on Twitter. But another way should be found to involve advertisers in the ongoing conversation. That’s a new approach, and fraught with peril (in terms of potentially alienating your Twitter audience), but while there may be dragons this way, there is also treasure.
Reflecting on yesterday, Chris Hayes managed to spark the largest conversation of the day; even with this being a normally quiet week, his mention count was very healthy, driven by a discussion about religious freedom for corporations and the Iran negotiations.
Note that all times are US Eastern Time. See notes at end for further explanations. For earlier articles on cable news twitter ratings, please see this.
Cable News Ratings for 2013-11-26
Top Shows for the day:
| Category | Mentions | Show |
| Most Mentions During Hour | 2787 | MSNBC: All In w/ Chris Hayes |
| Most Mentions During Day | 20879 | CNN: Piers Morgan Live |
Overall ratings by network
| Network | Tweet Count | Unique Tweeters | Reach | Male | Female |
| CNN | 42395 | 30039 | 289404088 | 62 % | 38 % |
| MSNBC | 28029 | 11916 | 109288794 | 57 % | 43 % |
| Fox News | 24039 | 12416 | 124123840 | 66 % | 34 % |
| E | 8356 | 5442 | 99830617 | 20 % | 80 % |
| Al Jazeera | 3213 | 2264 | 13932582 | 62 % | 38 % |
| Comedy Central | 1604 | 1284 | 5443829 | 61 % | 39 % |
| HLN | 1431 | 999 | 6008765 | 39 % | 61 % |
| HBO | 1053 | 803 | 5947450 | 68 % | 32 % |
For networks that are not predominantly news, only news(-like) shows are included. See the detailed listings below for precise shows
Most popular hastags
| Hashtag | Count |
| #blackfish | 4373 |
| #tcot | 3811 |
| #lnyhbt | 3597 |
| #inners | 2912 |
| #onedirectionweek | 2587 |
| #obamacare | 1952 |
| #afc | 1908 |
| #maddow | 1850 |
| #iran | 1616 |
| #tgdn | 1389 |
Ratings for individual time slots
Ratings for 12 am
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| CNN | Piers Morgan Live | 102 | 20879 | 73% | 27% |
| Fox News | The Kelly File | 105 | 2025 | 58% | 42% |
| HLN | Dr Drew On Call | 29 | 297 | 36% | 64% |
| MSNBC | The Rachel Maddow Show | 116 | 3514 | 51% | 49% |
Ratings for 1 am
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| CNN | Anderson Cooper 360 | 15 | 1442 | 50% | 50% |
| Fox News | Hannity | 130 | 6830 | 68% | 32% |
| HLN | Nancy Grace | 14 | 499 | 47% | 53% |
| MSNBC | The Last Word w/Lawrence O’Donnell | 31 | 1181 | 53% | 47% |
Ratings for 2 am
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| CNN | AC360 Later | 7 | 1442 | 50% | 50% |
| Fox News | On The Record w/Greta Van Susteren | 6 | 817 | 59% | 41% |
| HLN | ShowBiz Tonight | 0 | 76 | 16% | 84% |
| MSNBC | Hardball w/Chris Matthews | 11 | 1164 | 59% | 41% |
Ratings for 3 am
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| CNN | Piers Morgan Live | 89 | 20879 | 73% | 27% |
| Fox News | RedEye | 25 | 962 | 71% | 29% |
| MSNBC | All In w/Chris Hayes | 13 | 5222 | 57% | 43% |
Ratings for 4 am
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| CNN | Anderson Cooper 360 | 13 | 1442 | 50% | 50% |
| Fox News | The Five | 17 | 918 | 73% | 27% |
| HLN | ShowBiz Tonight | 0 | 76 | 16% | 84% |
| MSNBC | The Rachel Maddow Show | 40 | 3514 | 51% | 49% |
Ratings for 5 am
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| CNN | EarlyStartCNN | 33 | 80 | 41% | 59% |
| Fox News | FoxFriendsFirst | 69 | 212 | 66% | 34% |
| HLN | Dr Drew On Call | 2 | 297 | 36% | 64% |
| MSNBC | First Look (5-5:30) | 0 | 0 | 0% | 0% |
| MSNBC | Way Too Early (5:30-6) | 15 | 83 | 73% | 27% |
Ratings for 6 am
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| CNN | New Day | 103 | 985 | 44% | 56% |
| Fox News | Fox And Friends | 165 | 1043 | 56% | 44% |
| HLN | Morning Express w/Robin Meade | 15 | 179 | 63% | 37% |
| MSNBC | Morning Joe | 633 | 3033 | 49% | 51% |
Ratings for 7 am
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| CNN | New Day | 136 | 985 | 44% | 56% |
| Fox News | Fox And Friends | 188 | 1043 | 56% | 44% |
| HLN | Morning Express w/Robin Meade | 33 | 179 | 63% | 37% |
| MSNBC | Morning Joe | 890 | 3033 | 49% | 51% |
Ratings for 8 am
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| CNN | New Day | 187 | 985 | 44% | 56% |
| Fox News | Fox And Friends | 234 | 1043 | 56% | 44% |
| HLN | Morning Express w/Robin Meade | 22 | 179 | 63% | 37% |
| MSNBC | Morning Joe | 685 | 3033 | 49% | 51% |
Ratings for 9 am
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| CNN | News Room | 23 | 60 | 64% | 36% |
| Fox News | America’s Newsroom | 7 | 31 | 78% | 22% |
| HLN | Morning Express w/Robin Meade | 10 | 179 | 63% | 37% |
| MSNBC | The Daily Run Down | 267 | 2034 | 66% | 34% |
Ratings for 10 am
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| CNN | News Room | 6 | 60 | 64% | 36% |
| Fox News | America’s Newsroom | 9 | 31 | 78% | 22% |
| HLN | Morning Express w/Robin Meade | 11 | 179 | 63% | 37% |
| MSNBC | Jansing & Co. | 55 | 125 | 64% | 36% |
Ratings for 11 am
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| CNN | Legal View w/Banfield | 17 | 26 | 83% | 17% |
| Fox News | Happening Now | 17 | 88 | 66% | 34% |
| HLN | Morning Express w/Robin Meade | 6 | 179 | 63% | 37% |
| MSNBC | MSNBC Live w/ Thomas Roberts | 135 | 238 | 45% | 55% |
Ratings for 12 pm
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| CNN | Around the World (News Room) | 0 | 60 | 64% | 36% |
| Fox News | Happening Now | 9 | 88 | 66% | 34% |
| HLN | Raising America | 0 | 7 | 100% | 0% |
| MSNBC | Now w/Alex Wagner | 141 | 414 | 52% | 48% |
Ratings for 1 pm
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| CNN | News Room | 8 | 60 | 64% | 36% |
| Fox News | America’s News HQ | 9 | 28 | 89% | 11% |
| HLN | News Now | 3 | 11 | 50% | 50% |
| MSNBC | Andrea Mitchell Reports | 152 | 389 | 45% | 55% |
Ratings for 2 pm
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| CNN | News Room | 4 | 60 | 64% | 36% |
| Fox News | The Real Story w/Gretchen Carlson | 152 | 419 | 69% | 31% |
| HLN | News Now | 3 | 11 | 50% | 50% |
| MSNBC | News Nation w/ Tamron Hall | 114 | 371 | 51% | 49% |
Ratings for 3 pm
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| CNN | News Room | 3 | 60 | 64% | 36% |
| Fox News | Shepard Smith Reporting | 3 | 36 | 55% | 45% |
| HLN | News Now | 4 | 11 | 50% | 50% |
| MSNBC | The Cycle | 131 | 378 | 68% | 32% |
| MSNBC | The Cycle (w/ Host Accounts) | 161 | 1004 | 60% | 40% |
Ratings for 4 pm
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| CNN | The Lead w/Jake Tapper | 59 | 743 | 63% | 37% |
| Fox News | Your World | 46 | 310 | 71% | 29% |
| HLN | Now In America | 0 | 0 | 0% | 0% |
| MSNBC | Martin Bashir | 296 | 1341 | 61% | 39% |
Ratings for 5 pm
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| Al Jazeera | Inside Story (5-5:30) | 1 | 7 | 60% | 40% |
| CNN | The Situation Room | 64 | 653 | 77% | 23% |
| Fox News | The Five | 450 | 918 | 73% | 27% |
| Fox News | The Five w/Hosts | 1004 | 4840 | 69% | 31% |
| HLN | Evening Express | 0 | 3 | 0% | 100% |
| MSNBC | The Ed Show | 1560 | 2976 | 52% | 48% |
Ratings for 6 pm
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| CNN | The Situation Room (6 – 6:30) | 149 | 653 | 77% | 23% |
| CNN | Crossfire (6:30 – 7) | 1 | 15 | 80% | 20% |
| CNN | Crossfire With Hosts (6:30 – 7) | 601 | 2008 | 70% | 30% |
| Fox News | Special Report w/Bret Baier | 94 | 527 | 70% | 30% |
| HLN | Evening Express | 3 | 3 | 0% | 100% |
| MSNBC | PoliticsNation w/ Al Sharpton | 356 | 1149 | 72% | 28% |
Ratings for 7 pm
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| Al Jazeera | Real Money with Ali Velshi (7 – 7:30) | 11 | 122 | 62% | 38% |
| Al Jazeera | The Stream (7:30 – 8) | 117 | 1046 | 65% | 35% |
| CNN | Out Front w/Erin Burnett | 144 | 374 | 82% | 18% |
| E | E! News | 787 | 8356 | 20% | 80% |
| Fox News | On The Record w/Greta Van Susteren | 146 | 817 | 59% | 41% |
| HLN | Jane Velez-Mitchell | 22 | 133 | 24% | 76% |
| MSNBC | Hardball w/ Chris Matthews | 560 | 1164 | 59% | 41% |
Ratings for 8 pm
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| CNN | Anderson Cooper 360 | 388 | 1442 | 50% | 50% |
| Fox News | The O’Reilly Factor | 190 | 688 | 68% | 32% |
| HLN | Nancy Grace | 100 | 499 | 47% | 53% |
| MSNBC | All In w/ Chris Hayes | 2787 | 5222 | 57% | 43% |
Ratings for 9 pm
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| Al Jazeera | America Tonight | 42 | 277 | 41% | 59% |
| CNN | Piers Morgan Live | 570 | 20879 | 73% | 27% |
| Fox News | The Kelly File | 1192 | 2025 | 58% | 42% |
| HLN | Dr Drew On Call | 135 | 297 | 36% | 64% |
| MSNBC | The Rachel Maddow Show | 1613 | 3514 | 51% | 49% |
Ratings for 10 pm
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| Al Jazeera | Consider This | 14 | 116 | 85% | 15% |
| CNN | AC360 Later | 106 | 1442 | 50% | 50% |
| Fox News | Hannity | 1147 | 6830 | 68% | 32% |
| HLN | HLN After Dark | 0 | 45 | 13% | 87% |
| MSNBC | The Last Word w/Lawrence O’Donnell | 531 | 1181 | 53% | 47% |
Ratings for 11 pm
| Network | Show | Tweets Hour | Tweets Day | Male | Female |
| Comedy Central | The Daily Show (11-11:30) | 93 | 658 | 60% | 40% |
| Comedy Central | The Colbert Report (11:30-12am) | 55 | 953 | 62% | 38% |
| Fox News | The O’Reilly Factor | 40 | 688 | 68% | 32% |
| HLN | ShowBiz Tonight | 8 | 76 | 16% | 84% |
| MSNBC | All In w/Chris Hayes | 251 | 5222 | 57% | 43% |
Definition of terms used in this report:
- Network: For the purposes of total network mentions, the count is the total unique tweets that mention any of the shows tracked on the network or the network’s general Twitter account (e.g., @CNN).
- Mentions During Hour or Tweets Hour: The number of tweets that mention the show during the hour specified. For shows that are repeat later in the day, the first (and often live) showing usually garners the most mentions by a significant margin.
- Mentions During day or Tweets Day: The total number of mentions a show received from midnight to midnight, eastern time.
- Tweet Count: The number of tweets (including retweets) that mention a show.
- Unique Tweeters: The number of Twitter users who have sent one or more tweets mentioning a show. If a user sends more than one tweet, they still only count once.
- Reach: A measure of the number of impressions a collection of tweets will make. For each tweet that is sent, it adds up how many people follow the person tweeting it — how many timelines that tweet will show up in. Thus, if network A has 10,000 mentions from people with an average of 10 followers, the reach will be 100,000. On the other hand, if network B has 10,000 mentions from people with an average of 100 followers, the reach will be 1,000,000. So network B has much greater reach: tweets mentioning network B will potentially be seen 10 times as often as tweets about network A.
- Male / Female: An estimate of the demographics of a show’s audience. Note that this number is an imprecise estimate.
Cable News Twitter Ratings are still experimental. If you have any suggestions, find any errors, or have any questions, please feel free to contact me at admin@socialseer.com
For further discussion of how these stats are calculated, please see this blog post. Especially the part about how I determine the gender of Twitter users.