Despite criticism, Maddow gets biggest audience

Despite some criticism of how the show played out, MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow scored her biggest audience ever on Tuesday after tweeting that she had gotten her hands on some of President Donald Trump’s tax records for 2005.

Her show reached 4.13 million people, the Nielsen company said. It was second only to a “Countdown” episode with Keith Olbermann just before the 2008 election as MSNBC’s most-watched series episode ever, Nielsen said.

The ratings showed the power of social media. Maddow had tweeted less than 90 minutes before her show about the tax return scoop and word quickly spread online. But some viewers were disappointed that the tax records — two pages from a 2005 return — were not more extensive. She also was criticized for waiting nearly 20 minutes before revealing what the tax records showed.

Her show has been on a high since Trump took office. Nielsen said she’s averaged 2.1 million viewers per night so far this year, up from 1.1 million in 2016.

The attention paid to her show also didn’t take away from corporate cousin NBC’s season finale of “This is Us,” which reached a series-record 12.8 million viewers on Tuesday. The drama’s audience is likely to increase with delayed viewing.

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