MSNBC boasted a first-place finish among cable news networks in the weekday primetime news-demo ratings last week. It marks MSNBC’s first such win since the week of December 29, 2008.

In total viewers, MSNBC’s weekday pimetime averaged 2.4 million viewers, nipping at Fox News Channel’s 2.6M and nearly double that of CNN’s 1.3M.

NBC News

Three MSNBC programs finished No. 1 in the news demo in their time slots: The Rachel Maddow Show at 9 PM, The Last Word With Lawrence O’Donnell at 10 PM and The 11th Hour With Brian Williams at 11 PM. Maddow’s show and Williams also were No. 1 in their slots in total viewers.

Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, MSNBC’s ratings news waas drowned out by the din caused by a report O’Donnell had just weeks left on his contract and no new deal. NBC News chairman Andy Lack is mulling whether he wouldn’t prefer to move 11th Hour host Brian Williams in the 10 PM slot, a source says.

On Thursday — the day when NBC News aired Lester Holt’s jaw-dropping interview with President Donald Trump, to the benefit of NBC News programs — including O’Donnell’s, which ranked No. 1 in its slot in the news demo and No. 2 in all of cable TV — he thanked viewers for their support, adding meaningfully, “We need it”: