Nielsen Wire » Jim Lehrer

First Prez Debate Retains Steady TV Audience Throughout

admin — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 19:29:22 +0000

As previously reported, 31.6% of all television households nationwide tuned in for John McCain and Barack Obama’s first presidential debate.

A closer look at the minute-by-minute TV ratings, released Wednesday by Nielsen, reveals few peaks or drop-offs in household viewing during Friday’s debate.

According to Nielsen’s analysis, after an early ramp-up in the debate’s first five minutes, the percentage of households watching the debate held steady throughout the remainder of the telecast.

The percentage of TV households watching the McCain-Obama debate peaked at 32.9% at 9:38pm EST Friday night.

Debate viewing dropped off significantly after the debate ended at approximately 10:30pm EST.

52.4 Million Watched McCain And Obama’s First Debate

admin — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 23:05:09 +0000

According to data from across 11 networks, the first presidential debate on September 26 between John McCain and Barack Obama drew 52.4 million viewers.

The TV audience for the first presidential debate of the 2008 election was roughly 16% smaller than the audience for the first debate between President Bush and John Kerry during the 2004 election, which drew 62.5 million viewers on September 30, 2004. See more historical debate ratings.

ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, Telefutura, Telemundo, BBC-America, CNBC, CNN, FOX News Channel, and MSNBC aired live coverage of the McCain/Obama debate from approximately 9pm to 10:45pm EST.

Read coverage of Nielsen’s findings in the Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Boston Globe, The Hollywood Reporter, Media Life, and by the Associated Press.

Obama And McCain’s First Debate Drew More Than One-Third Of Households In Top Local TV Markets

admin — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 15:56:52 +0000

The combined overall household rating for Friday night’s presidential debate, in 55 of the 56 local television markets where Nielsen maintains electronic TV meters, was 34.7.

One rating point equals 1% of the total TV audience in a given market.

Coverage of the first presidential debate between Barack Obama and John McCain aired on ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, PBS, CNN, Telemundo, TeleFutura, BBCA, Fox News, MSNBC, and C-Span.

Previously, Nielsen reported that the combined overall household rating for the top 55 local markets was 33.2. That rating excluded households that viewed the debate on Fox News, MSNBC, and C-Span.

National ratings for Friday night’s debate will be available from Nielsen on Monday.