Stat fest

The 2012 figures for US cable news channels are in. In primetime ratings for all adults, Fox News is up to an average 2.04 million, from 1.86m in 2011; MSNBC is up from an average 775k in 2011 to 905k in 2012; and CNN is down, from an average 689k, to 677k.

Piers Morgan can take consolation now that he stands at Number 3 in the White House Petitions Most Popular Ranking. 104,000 have signed up to the call for his deportation, puttting him ahead of the 82,901 who want the federal ban on marijuana lifted.  He stands behind those who want secession for Texas (124,727) and the chart-topping petition for legal recognition of the Westboro Baptist Church as a "hate group" (307,877).

• The estimated $500m paid by Al Jazeera for Current TV wasn't for the existing audiences. Current ended 2012 with average prime time ratings of 41,000 - just above Sunderland's average gate this season. Current TV's contract with Time Warner gives it access to 30 million homes.  BBC World News' deal with Time Warner provides access to 25 million homes.