Political Leanings of Talk Show Fans
With Presidential candidates and their surrogates hitting the mainstream and syndicated talk show circuit, what are the actual political leanings of their viewers?
Both Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton recently appeared on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon, and perhaps with good reason: according to YouGov Profiles data, Fallon has a higher percentage of fans who identify as political moderates than either conservatives or liberals. Appealing to moderates is likely critical to both candidates.
Jimmy Kimmel is the only other late night major network talk show host which strikes the same political balance among its fan base. PBS’ Charlie Rose Show, although broadcast on a much smaller scale at night and on public television, also shares this unique trait.
In general, talk shows skew toward liberals – especially The Daily Show, Last Week Tonight With John Oliver, Full Frontal With Samantha Bee, Real Time With Bill Maher, and The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.
However, there are four non-cable daytime programs, not on Fox News Channel, which have a relatively high fan base of conservatives (although still dominated by either moderates or liberals): CBS This Morning, Good Morning America, Dr. Phil, and The Dr. Oz Show (where Trump appeared in mid-September).
Other observations from YouGov Profiles research on talk shows and their political supporters:
- The Today Show, The Talk, and Live With Kelly are the three morning/daytime programs with more moderate fans than either liberal or conservative.
- Dr. Phil has the biggest support of moderates and the smallest amount of liberal fans among all talk shows on broadcast TV.
- Shows which are dominated by both liberal and moderate fans: Late Night With Seth Meyers, The Late Late Show With James Corden, The View, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and Conan O’Brien.
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