The Grace/Olbermann Duel Continues

Yesterday the conclusion based on Q1 ratings data was that Headline News had supplanted MSNBC as the third-place cable news channel, thanks in part to rising star Nancy Grace. But the numbers are never that simple: On Tuesday night, MSNBC’s Countdown with Keith Olbermann beat Grace in the 8pm hour. Olbermann averaged 490,000 viewers, compared to 420,000 for Grace.

> Update: 7:45pm: Here are the full numbers for 8pm:

FNC: 1,895,000 / CNN: 564,000 / MSNBC: 409,000 / HLN: 373,000 / CNBC: 114,000

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Create a social media strategy, launch your campaign, and track the results in our Social Media Marketing Boot Camp starting February 16. The online event and workshop will feature speakers including The Onion‘s Baratunde Thurston (left), Facebook’s Morin Oluwole, and bitly’s Tim Devane. Register now.