Jesse Watters’ Monday premiere as the new permanent host of Fox News’ 7 p.m. ET hour netted him 3.8 million total viewers — the network’s best ratings in the time slot in more than a year.
In fact, Watters’ debut scored double the viewership for the hour compared to the same day in 2021 and more viewers than every “Fox News Primetime” telecast since the show launched last year with a rotating cast of hosts.
In fact, Watters drew more viewers — including 537,000 in the advertiser-coveted age demographic of 25 to 54 — than Fox News has gotten at 7 p.m. slot since Jan. 6, 2021, the same day that Donald Trump supporters stormed the Capitol in a deadly riot to protest of the certification of President Joe Biden’s electoral win.
Notably, “Jesse Watters Primetime” got more viewers than ABC’s “The Bachelor.” CNN’s 7 p.m. offering, “Erin Burnett OutFront,” drew 700,000 total average viewers, while MSNBC’s “The ReidOut” netted 1.2 million, giving “Jesse Watters Primetime” a 446% advantage and a 216% advantage over each of them respectively.
“The Five,” which Watters also co-hosts, was the top-rated cable program on Monday, pulling in 3.9 million total average viewers, of whom 588,000 were in the demo.
Additionally, FNC’s “The Five” at 5 PM/ET remained the top-rated live program in all of cable, with 3.9 million total viewers and 588,000 in the demo.
During the premiere, Watters resurrected the “Watters World” man-on-the-street segments that catapulted him to fame on Fox News and gave out a number that viewers could text their questions and comments to. Earlier in the day, he told TheWrap about his vision for the show, which he hopes will inspire a national conversation.
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