With the U.S. financial crisis hanging in the balance, the first debate between Barack Obama and John McCain – originally scheduled for Friday — has taken on unusual importance. But, how will this first presidential duel of the 2008 election compare with the most-watched debates of the last half-century?
Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan’s October 28, 1980 debate claimed the largest television audience — 80.6 million viewers — since 1976, the first year that Nielsen collected TV viewership data for presidential debates.
George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and Ross Perot’s October 15, 1992 debate (69.9 million viewers) and Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter’s September 23, 1976 debate (69.7 million viewers) round out the top three.
George H. W. Bush and Michael Dukakis’s 1988 debates and Ronald Reagan and Walter Mondale’s 1984 debates also made the top 10.
| RANK | YEAR | NETWORK | DATE | CANDIDATES | VIEWERS P2+ (MILLIONS) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1980 | ABC, CBS, NBC | Oct. 28 | Carter – Reagan | 80.6 |
| 2 | 1992 | ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN | Oct. 15 | Bush – Clinton – Perot | 69.9 |
| 3 | 1976 | ABC, CBS, NBC | Sept. 23 | Ford – Carter | 69.7 |
| 4 | 1988 | ABC, CBS, NBC | Oct. 13 | Bush – Dukakis | 67.3 |
| 5 | 1984 | ABC, CBS, NBC | Oct. 21 | Reagan – Mondale | 67.3 |
| 6 | 1992 | ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN | Oct. 19 | Bush – Clinton – Perot | 66.9 |
| 7 | 1988 | ABC, CBS, NBC | Sept. 25 | Bush – Dukakis | 65.1 |
| 8 | 1984 | ABC, CBS, NBC | Oct. 7 | Reagan – Mondale | 65.1 |
| 9 | 1976 | ABC, CBS, NBC | Oct. 6 | Ford – Carter | 63.9 |
| 10 | 1976 | ABC, CBS, NBC | Oct. 22 | Ford – Carter | 62.7 |
| Note: There were no televised Presidential debates for the years 1972, 1968, and 1964. Copyright 2004 Nielsen Media Research. |
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In terms of Nielsen household TV ratings, Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy’s presidential debates in 1960 dominate Nielsen’s top 10 ranking.
The two candidates’ October 13, 1960 debate, which drew 61% of all U.S. television households, claimed the top household rating of any presidential debate.
Nixon and Kennedy’s infamous September 26, 1960 debate — the first-ever televised presidential debate — ranked second, with 59.5% of all American TV households tuning in.
Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan’s October 28, 1980 debate was the only non-Kennedy vs. Nixon debate to crack the top five.
All three of Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter’s 1976 debates also ranked among the top 10 televised presidential debates, in terms of household ratings.
| RANK | YEAR | NETWORK | DATE | CANDIDATES | RATING (% OF HOUSEHOLDS) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1960 | ABC, CBS, NBC | Oct. 13 | Nixon – Kennedy | 61.0 |
| 2 | 1960 | ABC, CBS, NBC | Sept. 26 | Nixon – Kennedy | 59.5 |
| 3 | 1960 | ABC, CBS, NBC | Oct. 7 | Nixon – Kennedy | 59.1 |
| 4 | 1980 | ABC, CBS, NBC | Oct. 28 | Carter – Reagan | 58.9 |
| 5 | 1960 | ABC, CBS, NBC | Oct. 21 | Nixon – Kennedy | 57.8 |
| 6 | 1976 | ABC, CBS, NBC | Sept. 23 | Ford – Carter | 53.5 |
| 7 | 1976 | ABC, CBS, NBC | Oct. 6 | Ford – Carter | 52.4 |
| 8 | 1976 | ABC, CBS, NBC | Oct. 22 | Ford – Carter | 47.8 |
| 9 | 1992 | ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN | Oct. 15 | Bush – Clinton – Perot | 46.3 |
| 10 | 1984 | ABC, CBS, NBC | Oct. 21 | Reagan – Mondale | 46.0 |
| Note: There were no televised Presidential debates for the years 1972, 1968, and 1964. Copyright 2004 Nielsen Media Research. |
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View complete Nielsen ratings for all televised U.S. presidential and vice presidential debates from 1960 to present.
[...] Top Ten Presidential Debates: 1960 To Present [...]
[...] convention audience exceeds that for the first Bush-Kerry debate four years ago (62.5 million) and every other debate except the Reagan Carter debate in 1980. [...]
[...] watched the first debate between John Kerry and George W. Bush. That fell short of the record 80.6 million that saw Ronald Reagan debate Jimmy Carter in 1980, but it was an enormous audience [...]
[...] I think your right. But it’s going to be interesting. The Reagan/Carter 1980 debate had the highest viewership of any Presidential Debate with 80 million. I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised to see that record [...]
[...] reports that 52.4 million viewers watched the debate Friday night. It definitely not among the top 10 highest rated debates and was even smaller than the first Bush – Kerry debate in [...]
[...] out some of these stats regarding debates of yesteryear. Looks like Carter vs. Reagan (1980) claims the most viewers, while [...]
[...] million total viewers. This debate had more than 71 million total viewers, enough to be the second highest rated debate ever (behind 1980). In post-debate analysis, FNC was #1, followed by ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN and MSNBC. [...]
[...] Presidential debate between Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan: 80.6 million viewers (Largest viewership for a presidential debate ever) [...]
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