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38.3% Of Households In Top Local TV Markets Watched McCain and Obama’s Final Debate

admin — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 15:47:19 +0000

The combined overall household rating for Wednesday night’s final presidential debate, in the top 56 local television markets where Nielsen maintains electronic TV meters, was 38.3.

In comparison, last week’s debate between Senators McCain and Obama — the candidates’ second – received a 42.0 household rating in the top 55 local TV markets. The candidates’ first debate on September 26 received a 34.7 household rating in the top 55 markets.

Wednesday night’s championship baseball game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Philadelphia Phillies — aired by FOX, instead of the debate – may have impacted the debate’s ratings. In the Philadelphia market, where 43.7% of local households tuned in for last week’s presidential debate, the debate drew 32% of local households, while the baseball game drew 32.3%.

In the Los Angeles market, 10.2% of local households watched the game, while 29.2% of households watched the debate — down slightly from the previous debate, in which 33.7% of L.A. homes tuned in.

Among the top 56 local metered markets, the Baltimore market had the largest TV audience, with a household rating of 49.3, while the Sacramento/Stockton/Modesto, California market again had the lowest household rating: 28.1.

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

Rank (by H.H. rating)	Market	Market Rank (by population size)	Household Rating (% of U.S. households that watched debate)
1	Baltimore	26	49.3
2	Washington, DC (Hagrstwn)	9	48.4
3	St. Louis	21	48.1
4	Richmond-Petersburg	58	48.1
5	West Palm Beach-Ft. Pierce	38	47.4
6	Nashville	29	46.6
7	Norfolk-Portsmth-Newpt Nws	43	46.5
8	Kansas City	31	45.1
9	Orlando-Daytona Bch-Melbrn	19	43.9
10	Memphis	48	43.8
Source: The Nielsen Company (October 15, 2008).

View ratings for Nielsen’s 56 top local metered markets.

Coverage of the final debate between Senators John McCain and Barack Obama aired on NBC, CBS, ABC, BBCA, CSPAN, PBS, MSNBC, CNBC, UNIVISION, CNN, and FOX News Channel.

National ratings for Wednesday night’s debate will be available from Nielsen Thursday afternoon.

Chinese Women’s Volleyball Team A Top TV Draw

admin — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 16:48:48 +0000

The official work week has begun, but people in China are still finding time to tune into Olympics broadcasts on TV. On Monday, August 11, the third day of the Beijing Olympics, 84% of Chinese families tuned in to at least some Olympic programming, according to AGB Nielsen Media Research.

The top-ranked Chinese Women’s Volleyball team’s match against Poland drew the largest TV audience on Monday. More than 148 million Chinese tuned in for the final, which drew an average audience of over 54 million viewers, according to AGB Nielsen.

In all, on Monday, more than 362 million people throughout China watched Chinese athletes take home a total of three gold medals.

View the full press release.

Chinese TV Viewing Levels Up 45% During Olympics

admin — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 16:29:29 +0000

The total Chinese television audience for Olympics broadcasts on CCTV, China’s state broadcaster, was up by 45% on Saturday, August 9, the official start date of the Olympic Games — compared with TV viewing levels from just a few days before the Olympics began, according to Nielsen.

On Sunday, August 10, the men’s weightlifting 56Kg class final, in which Chinese player Long Qingquan won the gold medal, was the most popular TV event among Chinese viewers. More than 129 million Chinese tuned in for the final, which drew an average audience of over 52 million viewers, according to Nielsen.

Despite starting late at night (10pm Beijing time) to allow American basketball fans to tune in, Sunday’s China vs. U.S. men’s basketball game also drew a large TV audience in China. More than 88 million Chinese watched the game, which drew an average audience of over 37 million, according Nielsen.

View the full press release.