Culture

Wall-to-Wall Royal Baby Coverage Didn't Do Much to Boost Cable News Ratings

Not as much as the intensity of the coverage would've suggested

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Great Britain's yet-to-be-named prince made his TV debut just a few hours ago, with Prince WIlliam and Duchess Catherine stepping outside London's St. Mary's Hospital for a small press appearance—but the infant has been a hot topic for cable and broadcast viewers since early Monday morning.

The cable news ratings battle for royal baby enthusiasts saw only key wins in total day and primetime for Fox News Channel—while breaking news of the actual birth gave CNN an advantage in the targeted adults 25-54 demographic during the 3 p.m. hour. Comparisons to the previous Monday don't shed much light on growth, as most news outlets were still heavily covering fallout of the George Zimmerman trial, but FNC, CNN and MSNBC were all up slightly from year-to-date averages.