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President Donald Trump criticized Fox News on Tuesday night through a series of posts on Truth Social while Democratic victories unfolded during the midterm elections.
Blaming the Network for Election Losses
Trump criticized the network, which he has historically supported, for Republican defeats. In one post on his social media platform, he stated that the network bears responsibility for the losses by continually featuring the opposition.
During the election, Democrats secured control of both the Senate and the House of Representatives by winning seats in traditionally Republican states such as Texas, South Carolina, and Kansas. Fox News did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding Trump’s remarks.
Addressing Declining Ratings
Trump also highlighted the network’s recent viewership decline as proof of its dropping popularity. He posted that Fox News ratings have fallen significantly by 27 percent because they spend excessive time covering Democrats, noting that former viewers understand the shift.
In a press release issued the previous week, Fox News stated it averaged 1.1 million viewers in October, representing a 27 percent decrease compared to the same month the prior year. Fox Corp. Chief Executive Officer Lachlan Murdoch addressed the drop during a quarterly earnings call on Monday, attributing it to viewer fatigue.
Murdoch explained that such a decline is anticipated prior to a midterm election under a second-term president and clarified that viewers were not migrating to rival networks. He noted that those audiences are not switching to MS NOW or CNN, but are simply watching slightly less television overall.
According to Nielsen data cited by Fox, Versant-owned MS NOW and Skydance-owned CNN both experienced double-digit increases in primetime viewership in October compared to the previous year, though both networks maintained smaller total-day average audiences than Fox News. MS NOW recorded 588,000 average viewers across all day parts in October, while CNN recorded 402,000.
Strong Financial Results
Despite the year-over-year drop in audience numbers, Fox Corp. reported a strong financial quarter, which Murdoch described as an outstanding start to fiscal 2027. The company, encompassing linear TV networks, entertainment and sports assets, and a streaming business, posted fiscal first-quarter revenue of $4.57 billion, marking a 22 percent increase year over year.
Fox Corp. attributed the growth to strong advertising revenue, which rose 47 percent, driven by political advertising and the FIFA Men’s World Cup broadcast across Fox platforms in June and July.
Trump frequently criticizes media organizations he perceives as biased, having previously targeted NBC and ABC, though he has generally maintained a closer relationship with Fox and its networks. Just prior to the election, Trump made an appearance on Fox News’ “Hannity” on Monday night.
