From Axios:
Changes in monthly traffic in the months before and after Trump left office
Axios' principal takeaway is that "outlets most dependent on controversy to stir up resentments have struggled to find a foothold in the Biden era … and publishers that rely on partisan, ideological warfare have taken an especially big hit."
A glance at the charts alone — without reading the fine print above, "Selected media publications" — might lead to confusion, as might a cursory reading of Axios' analysis. The words "outlets" and "publishers" are conflated. While the outlets of Fox News and Newsmax are known for their television presence, the charts and analysis refer only to their online publications.
There is also this inconsistency. To repeat, Axios writes that "publishers that rely on partisan, ideological warfare have taken an especially big hit," adding that "right-wing outlets are seeing some of the biggest plunges." But while Fox News and Newsmax dropped by 22% and 21% respectively, mainstream publications such as the New York Times and Wall Street Journal dropped nearly as far: 18%.
In its "Between the lines" segment, Axios explains that "while the Biden administration has seen plenty of debate over policy, economics and a a crisis at the border, personality-based controversy has largely been absent." Thus readership declines, for there's nothing like a personal target to dismember.
I have an alternative, empirical explanation for drops in readership across the ideological board. For 20 years, after each presidential election I've watched significant drops in this site's readership. This evidence is, of course, singular and a bit anecdotal, but it squares with the charts. Midterms don't do much to heighten reader numbers, but mano a mano, gladiatorial contests can do statistical wonders, however fleeting they may be.