At 7:08 a.m. on Monday, President Trump posted that Fox News "spends more time defending Dumocrats, and putting on their views versus their Republican opponent, than at any time in the History of FoxNews," then sent his followers to RSBN for his Kansas rally. The post gave no minutes and named no guests. The one hard number in the story is Nielsen's: Fox's prime-time audience fell 17% from a year ago, while MS NOW and CNN both grew.
What did Trump actually post?
The full text, as archived by Trump's Truth, reads: "Fox spends more time defending Dumocrats, and putting on their views versus their Republican opponent, than at any time in the History of FoxNews. It's ridiculous! FoxNews is trying too hard to be Politically Correct! Watch my big Kansas Rally today on RSBN. Great early coverage! President DJT." The original post is on Truth Social.
It is the latest in a run. After his October 3 rally in Vandalia, Ohio, Trump wrote that "Our people want to see our Rallies, and reports on our Rallies, on Fox News, or they will very quickly stop watching," according to TheWrap. In September he asked why Fox "always" books Chuck Schumer, Hakeem Jeffries and Jessica Tarlov, per TheWrap's recap.
President Trump at a "Build the Red Wall" rally at Dream City Church in Phoenix, Arizona. Photo: Gage Skidmore, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Primary source
Truth Social post by @realDonaldTrump, Monday, October 19, 2026, 7:08 a.m. EDT. Archived copy and original link below.
"Fox spends more time defending Dumocrats, and putting on their views versus their Republican opponent, than at any time in the History of FoxNews. It's ridiculous! FoxNews is trying too hard to be Politically Correct!" - Donald J. Trump
Can anyone check the "more than ever" claim?
Not from what Trump provided. "Defending Democrats" is a judgment call, and "than at any time in the History of FoxNews" would take a tally of guest minutes going back to 1996. Nobody has published one. If Fox's bookers are tilting left, a log of Democratic and Republican guests by week would show it, and Trump's allies could build that in an afternoon.
Take one recent complaint. Per TheWrap, citing Mediaite, Fox's Sunday morning show did carry Ohio rally coverage, though it mentioned only Trump's defense of data centers. That is a fair thing to criticize. It is also different from "not covering."
What do Fox's ratings say?
According to Adweek's Nielsen tally for the third quarter, Fox News averaged 2.064 million prime-time viewers and 1.321 million across the full day. Against Q3 2025, that is down 17% in prime and 16% in total day. In the 25-54 demo the drops were 25% and 24%. Adweek says Fox was the only network in its year-over-year comparison to record declines.
The comparison networks went the other way. MS NOW averaged 933,000 in prime, up 16%, and CNN 608,000, up 13%. Fox still holds first place among all cable networks in prime-time total viewers, with about 2.2 times MS NOW's audience. Summer hurt everyone: all three fell by double digits against Q2.
Prime-time total viewers, Q3 2026 vs. Q3 2025. Chart by PatriotAddict from Adweek's Nielsen figures (Nielsen Big Data + Panel).
Is Fox's slide the viewers' verdict on bias?
The ratings do not say why. Adweek's report offers no cause, and a one-quarter comparison against a busier 2025 can overstate any trend. One thing they do not show is where the lost viewers went. RSBN, the outlet Trump keeps pointing to, streams his speeches in full. Adweek's report has no RSBN figure, and none appears in any source cited here.
There is a second thread. Fox issued a statement supporting CNN after Trump barred CNN, Politico and MS NOW from the White House press pool. And on September 3 Fox announced Maria Bartiromo's exit "effective immediately," calling it "a business decision" and saying "the release speaks for itself," per TheWrap. Reports of what led to it, including a Puck account that she sent internal guidance to the White House, come from unnamed sources, and Fox has not confirmed them.
What should readers watch next?
With the midterms about two weeks out, this is the stretch where a network's guest list gets counted by both parties. The Q4 ratings, published once the quarter ends, will show whether Fox's slide continues when the news is heavy.
For a viewer who wants to judge for themselves, the test is simple. Pick a week, count who gets the airtime, and compare it to what the president says. A claim about "the History of FoxNews" should come with a number, whichever side makes it.
Header photo: President Trump speaking at the "Build the Red Wall" rally at Dream City Church in Phoenix, Arizona. Photo: Gage Skidmore, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
