NEW YORK: The Rupert Murdoch promoted news broadcaster Fox is going from strength to strength in the US.

According to a Nielsen Media research data, the Fox News Channel (FNC) has beaten CNN and MSNBC combined in viewership and demographics in the prime time and 24-hour time period, this month.

The data further indicates that FNC had ten out of the top eleven shows in the cable news. CNN's only show in the top eleven Larry King Live remained at number four with 1,335,000 viewers.

King trailed FNC's The O'Reilly Factor (2,240,000 viewers), Hannity & Colmes (1,638,000 viewers) and The Fox Report with Shepard Smith (1,465,000 viewers) respectively.

According to the research data, FNC was able to average 1,497,000 viewers during prime time as against CNN and MSNBC, whose combined average was 1,156,000 viewers.

MSNBC lost nearly three-quarters of its April 2003 prime time audience, while CNN's share plummeted by 63 per cent. CNN's shows that suffered the most include Paula Zahn Now and Wolf Blitzer Live. Both these lost a whopping 72 per cent and 65 per cent of share from April 2003, says the research data.

For the 24-hour period, this month, FNC averaged 884,000 viewers vs the 713,000 viewers CNN and MSNBC drew collectively. MSNBC saw 72 per cent of that audience evaporate. CNN almost matched it with 69 per cent of its audience vanishing from April 2003.

In the advertiser friendly age group 25-54, FNC, which claims to be available in over 85 million US homes, averaged 502,000 persons in prime time and 322,000 persons in the 24-Hour period. While CNN and MSNBC's combined totals of 347,000 and 247,000 persons in the respective periods.