The Trump Indictments Have Increased MSNBC Viewership

 The following is part of a posting at Axios.com:

MSNBC has seen a boost in primetime ratings this summer, thanks in large part to its coverage of the slew of indictments against former President Donald Trump.

Why it matters: Fox News has been the undisputed cable news ratings leader for years. But Trump's legal woes, combined with Tucker Carlson's departure from Fox, have helped MSNBC close in on Fox News' prime-time lead several times in the past few months. 

Driving the news: MSNBC beat Fox News in primetime last Monday and Tuesday evenings thanks to its coverage of Trump's indictment in a fourth major case in Georgia over efforts to overturn the presidential election's outcome.

• Rachel Maddow's interview with Hillary Clinton after the indictment drew an unprecedented 3.9 million viewers on Monday evening. 
• The network narrowly beat Fox News in primetime on Monday, July 10, as well, although it surpassed Fox more consistently during the second quarter. 
• Mondays tend to be MSNBC's highest-rated primetime evenings, given that's when Maddow continues to regularly host her 9 p.m. show. 

Flashback: MSNBC starting to beat Fox News in primetime periodically following Carlson's departure in the April. 

• The network beat Fox News in primetime ratings for a full week in early June during its coverage of Trump's second indictment on charges relating to classified documents at Mar-a-Lago, ending Fox News' 120-week primetime winning streak.
• Throughout several points during the second quarter, MSNBC also beat Fox News in the prized 25-54 year-old advertising demographic.
• While most of the country is experiencing some level of fatigue over Trump's legal battles, MSNBC's viewership has increased with each subsequent indictment.