Surprise, Surprise, Surprise! You Won't Believe Which News Network Is Benefitting MOST From Tucker Carlson's Exit

The final episode of "Tucker Carlson Tonight" attracted 2.65 million viewers. At the same time, Brian Kilmeade's stint as a fill-in for "Fox News Tonight" saw a steady decrease in viewership, starting with 2.59 million on Monday, 1.7 million on Tuesday, and 1.33 million on Wednesday. Carlson's last Wednesday show brought in approximately 3 million viewers.

This downward trend has also impacted Sean Hannity's 9 pm slot. "Hannity" reported 2.5 million viewers on Monday, 2 million on Tuesday, and 1.7 million on Wednesday.

In contrast, the show had 2.6 million viewers the previous Wednesday. Similarly, "The Ingraham Angle" with Laura Ingraham experienced a drop in viewership, falling to 1.55 million viewers on Wednesday from 2.156 million on Wednesday, April 19.

 WATCH TRUMP: EUROPE HAS OPENED IT'S DOORS TO JIHAD

May 02, 2023

Jesse Watters' show also declined, with only 1.558 million viewers on Wednesday, compared to 2.1 million the previous week. However, "Gutfeld!" bucked the trend with an increase in viewership from 1.8 million last Wednesday to 2.02 million this Wednesday.

 WATCH DUKE PROFESSOR: STUDENTS VIEWING THE WORLD AS OPPRESSOR VS. OPPRESSED

Nielsen data from March indicated that "Tucker Carlson Tonight" was the top-rated show for the month, averaging 3.3 million viewers. "Hannity" followed with 2.6 million, "The Ingraham Angle" with 2 million, and "Gutfeld!" with 1.9 million viewers.

 KEVIN SPACEY'S DARK SECRETS EXPOSED IN NEW DOCUMENTARY SERIES

Newsmax has seen a surge in ratings since Carlson's exit, as reported by Nielsen. Eric Bolling's 8 pm show on Newsmax garnered 510,000 viewers on Wednesday night, a significant increase from 168,000 the week before. Bolling's show also saw 562,000 viewers on Tuesday, up from 122,000 the previous week.

 BIDEN AND MARK HAMILL'S "STAR WARS DAY" VIDEO: A GALACTIC SUCCESS OR EPIC FAIL?

Newsmax's CEO, Christopher Ruddy, told the New York Times that Fox News is shifting towards a more establishment position. "They want to renounce some of the Trumpisms and populist MAGA stuff that Tucker was echoing," Ruddy explained, adding that he aims to "embrace all sides of the Republican Party."

 TUBERCULOSIS OUTBREAK: HEALTH EMERGENCY DECLARED IN CALIFORNIA, ARE YOU AT RISK?

Newsmax highlighted last week that it is available in 24 million fewer cable homes than Fox News, making its viewership even more notable given its cable distribution. Nielsen data revealed that Newsmax was attracting approximately 57% of Fox's audience on a proportional basis for the 8 pm slot on Wednesday.

 WHY IS CINCO DE MAYO CELEBRATED MORE IN THE U.S. THAN MEXICO?

The reason for Carlson's sudden departure has not been disclosed. However, the former Fox News host released a two-minute video on his Twitter page that amassed tens of millions of views, surpassing the viewership of all cable networks combined.