A new report from Innovative Systems lists CBS as the most-viewed channel among rural TV subscribers for June through August, ahead of Fox News, NBC, ABX, Fox, and regional sports networks.

The channel report noted that Fox News reached number 2 for the first time in the history of the report.

CBS’ share rating of 53.9 was more than 40% greater than the 38.46 share rating of the summer of 2024.

The company used data from the set-top boxes in customers’ homes, which are offered to customers through their rural TV and internet providers.

Other winners this period included the following, according to the channel report:

• The Weather Channel cracked the top 20, reaching 19^th place.
• SYFY jumped back into the top 50, placing at number 47, up from 77 in the spring.

• Great American also moved up sharply, going from 42 previously to 29 in the current report.
• Regional sports networks and ESPN maintained their popularity, at 6 and 10, respectively.
• HGTV jumped into the top 10, placing at number 7.

Both local and national channels were popular in the study, and a variety of genres were represented. Due to the low quality of broadcast signal and decreasing newspaper presence in rural areas, local channels may be the only way for rural customers to learn about their communities.

That notion is supported by previous channel report data from Innovative Systems, which found that 47% of rural customers get live TV services from a local or national cable company, compared to 16% who got it via antenna and 13% who didn’t get any live TV at all.

The 10 least-viewed channels in the top 100 also represented a mix of genres: American Heroes, The Sportsman Channel, Fox Sports 2, ESPNEWS, Discovery Family, Nick Jr., Nicktoons Network, The Cooking Channel, Home Shopping Network, and Teen Nick.