Fox News Tops Primetime Ratings on Trump Arrest Day—’Wannabe Dictator’

Fox News Tops Primetime Ratings on Trump Arrest Day—’Wannabe Dictator’

Fox was the most watched news network on the day of Donald Trump‘s arraignment in Florida on Tuesday, a day where its primetime coverage was criticized for calling President Joe Biden a “wannabe dictator” on screen.

On June 13, when the former president pleaded not guilty to 37 federal offenses in connection to the classified documents case and then gave a speech at his resort in Bedminster, New Jersey, Fox News was the most watched channel on average, with MSNBC just behind in second and CNN in third.

As noted by Mediaite, Fox News’ The Five was the most watched network show that day, bringing in more than 2.9 million viewers. The conservative news channel also beat MSNBC in the 9 a.m. slot, with America’s Newsroom achieving 1.3 million views compared to Morning Joe‘s 1.2 million.

During the primetime slot between 7 p.m. and 10 p.m., Fox News’ Jesse Watters: Primetime, Fox News Tonight and Sean Hannity‘s shows were all the most watched shows across MSNBC, CNN, NewsNation and Newsmax.

Donald Trump in Bedminster
Donald Trump delivers remarks outside the clubhouse at the Trump National Golf Club on June 13, 2023 in Bedminster, New Jersey. Fox News had the network viewers on the day the former president was arrested then gave his speech in Bedminster.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Overall, Fox News brought in 2.42 million total viewers in primetime, narrowly beating MSNBC’s primetime slots, which achieved 2.41 million total viewers.

The week prior, MSNBC had actually beaten Fox News in its primetime slot for average ratings.

Fox‘s 120 week-long winning streak in primetime appears to be over,” tweeted A.J. Katz, a reporter specializing in the cable news business.

It was during this time period that Fox News was condemned for the chyron which it displayed at the bottom of the screen while running Trump’s speech at Bedminster attacking the classified documents case against him.

Towards the end of Trump’s post-arraignment speech, Fox News ran a split screen of the Republican speaking alongside a video of Biden with the caption: “Wannabe dictator speaks at the White House after having his political rival arrested.”

Political commentator Ameshia Cross was one of those who condemned the caption, describing it as “wrong” and a “flat out lie.”

David Rothkopf, a columnist for The Daily Beast, tweeted: “It is one thing to be a partisan b******* machine. It is another thing to simultaneously claim to be a news organization. Fox is allergic to facts. Big lawsuits haven’t changed that. This chyron has no basis in fact and spreads dangerous lies.”

Others praised the chyron which appeared on Tuesday night. Matt Vespa, a senior editor for right-wing news site Townhall, said in an opinion piece that “whoever wrote it deserves a massive raise.”

The chyron was eventually taken down just before Hannity started at 9 p.m.

In a statement to The Washington Post, a Fox News spokesperson said: “The chyron was taken down immediately and was addressed,” without specifying further.

Fox News has been contacted for further comment via email.

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