How NewsNation Is Quietly Challenging The Big Three Of Cable News

NewsNation anchors cover Donald Trump’s 2024 inauguration from the network’s Washington, D.C., studio.

NewsNation

When Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke this week with NewsNation’s Robert Sherman in Kyiv, the conversation came at a pivotal moment. Just days before President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin were scheduled to meet in Alaska to discuss a possible Ukraine-Russia ceasefire, Zelenskyy didn’t mince words. “I believe that Putin will benefit from this, because what he is seeking, frankly, is photographs,” he told Sherman in an exchange aired on NewsNation, the scrappy cable news alternative that’s growing fast by leaning into exclusives and old-school reporting. “He needs a photo from a meeting with President Trump.”

That kind of access — and the decision to invest in on-the-ground coverage from Kyiv ahead of the historic summit — is emblematic of the approach that’s made NewsNation one of the fastest-growing players in cable news. While the network’s bigger and more established rivals like CNN have seen dramatic audience declines over the past year, the four-year-old network (which is also just one year into a 24/7 schedule) has been moving in the opposite direction, posting gains in both total viewership and the coveted 25-54 demographic.

NewsNation: A fresh cable news network on the rise

From August 4–8, NewsNation devoted its primetime hours to an inside look at Ukraine’s advanced drone warfare program — reporting anchored by Sherman and culminating in a special, Ukraine: On the Frontlines. The network today is also delivering several hours of live coverage around the Trump-Putin summit, with correspondents stationed in both Alaska and Ukraine, plus political analysis from The Hill’s Chris Stirewalt. The network’s app and website are also streaming continuous updates, paired with special newsletters from Sherman and host Leland Vittert.

That level of commitment to a complex international story underscores why NewsNation’s tagline, News for All Americans, is more than a branding exercise. Under Nexstar’s ownership, the network leans on a national staff and the local resources of 110 newsrooms, a model that’s allowed it to consistently score exclusives — from being the first to call the 2024 presidential election for Trump, to breaking news in high-profile crime cases like the Kohberger plea deal.

As a result of all that, Nielsen data shows primetime viewership up 24% year-over-year, with daytime shows like Morning in America, NewsNation Now and NewsNation Live posting triple-digit growth in the 25-54 demo. Cuomo remains the top-rated program, but political affairs show The Hill and Leland Vittert’s On Balance have also grown their audiences. In July, NewsNation was also the only cable news network to post Total Day growth.

Since Dec 2022, NewsNation viewership has surpassed MSNBC several dozen times in the key demo across Total Day. This week, NewsNation also scored its first Edward R. Murrow Award, winning the recognition for reporter and anchor Natasha Zouves’ “Growing Broke: Forever Chemicals in America’s Heartland” — an investigation into fertilizer poisoning the land of farmers as well as the food supply.

Executives lean into the idea that NewsNation’s underdog status is part of its strength. “There is no other network providing the type of news coverage NewsNation is doing, and it is clear that Americans have found us,” says Cherie Grzech, president of news and politics. “We are relentless in our coverage, our correspondents are persistent in their reporting, and our local resources across the country are unmatched.”

That relentlessness has led to a string of headline-making moments — including the securing of an exclusive interview with Trump during a “first 100 days” town hall, and being the only U.S. network reporting live from Qatar during the recent Iranian missile strikes. NewsNation’s Reality Check YouTube show has even cracked the platform’s top 25 podcasts.

For a network that’s still relatively young — one that many Americans couldn’t even find on their dial just a few years ago — NewsNation’s trajectory suggests it’s carving out a rare space in the cable news business: It’s both growing and turning big stories into appointment viewing at a time when much of the industry is contracting. The Trump-Putin summit coverage is just one indicator among many that the “small but mighty” moniker might not fit the network for long.