Cable Networks Defy ‘Summer Slump’

While the summertime is known for its low TV viewership, some networks have something to celebrate this year. THR’s Live Feed reports that this is actually the most watched summer of all time and it’s cable’s fault:

According to a Turner research report, the average person watched a whopping 32.2 hours of TV per week this summer. In 2004, the average number of TV hours viewed during the summer was 29.8. The gains were driven by cable TV programming, which continues to erode the traditional advantage of the Big Four networks.

In the report, three cable news networks are among those with largest gains this summer: MSNBC is up 16%, HLN is up 18%, and Fox News is up 37% (that’s primetime for summer 09 vs. summer 08). On the summer top 10 lists, Fox News ranks #3 in primetime Total Viewers and #6 in total day Total Viewers.

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