CNN’s coverage of the final hour of the opening night of the Democratic National Convention drew more viewers than any of the three major broadcast networks, according to figures released by Nielsen.
CNN averaged 6.29 million viewers for Monday’s final hour, which aired from 10-11 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time and 7-8 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time and featured speeches by first lady Michelle Obama and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.
NBC topped the major broadcast networks during the time slot, averaging 4.29 million viewers from 10-11:25 p.m. EDT. ABC was second averaging 4.12 million viewers from 10-11:28 p.m. with CBS finishing third, averaging 3.21 million from 10-11:28 p.m.
MSNBC was second among the cable networks for the final hour-plus, averaging 4.63 million viewers from 10-11:23 p.m., also topping all three broadcast networks.
Fox News Channel was first among the cable networks for the night’s first hour of coverage, averaging 4.23 million viewers from 8-9 p.m. EDT, compared to 3.83 million for CNN and 2.89 million for MSNBC. CNN led in the second hour, averaging 5.24 million to 3.72 million for MSNBC and 3.7 million for Fox News Channel.
A two-hour episode of the ABC dating series “The Bachelorette” was the night’s most-watched program, averaging 6.38 million viewers.
—Staff and wire reports