Maddow Again Beats Fox News in Key Audience Demographic

Just six weeks into 2014, MSNBC host Rachel Maddow has once again won a key ratings victory in the 9 p.m. time slot, beating Fox News in the advertiser-coveted 25-to-54-year-old demographic last week, reports MediaBistro.

Maddow's first win of 2014 came the week of January 6, when she received her highest ratings since April 15 of last year, during the Boston Marathon bombing.

Maddow's comprehensive coverage of New Jersey governor Chris Christie's bridge-closure scandal has been a critical factor in her ratings success. In December she became the first cable newscaster to cover Christie's alleged bullying strategies, suggesting that the lane closures on the George Washington Bridge might have been his way of getting back at a political adversary. Since then she has regularly reported on the story and consistently broken news about further developments.

Maddow's ratings win is important for MSNBC, as it puts her ahead of Fox News's Megyn Kelly, whose promotion to prime time was Fox's bid to secure a younger viewing audience, notes MediaBistro. Maddow's second win in six weeks highlights the possibility that Kelly might not be connecting with the intended demographic as easily as Fox hoped.