Posted on 02/05/2022 6:18:42 PM PST by martin_fierro
The 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing are off to anything but a roaring start, with viewership down to an all-time low.
Thursday’s primetime coverage averaged just 7.25 million viewers on NBC. The previous low was the 8.5 million that tuned in for the final night of competition at last year’s Summer Olympics in Tokyo, per Sports Media Watch.
As OutKick’s Clay Travis noted on Twitter Friday, Americans are simply choosing not to watch, as the Olympics carry on in Beijing amid the ongoing Chinese genocide against Muslim Uyghurs.
For retrospect, Thursday’s number is down 55% from the 16 million that watched the opening night of the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang.
The U.S. notably did not send any diplomatic representatives to the Games, in a protest against China’s human rights violations.
“We will not be contributing to the fanfare of the Games. U.S. diplomatic or official representation would treat these Games as business as usual in the face of [China’s] egregious human rights abuses and atrocities in Xinjiang, and we simply can’t do that,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Dec. 6.
NBC’s broadcast, to the surprise of many, didn’t shy away from acknowledging the issues at hand in China. Olympics host Mike Tirico began his opening monologue with a message for Americans watching at home.
“Everything and everyone attached to these Games is facing questions,” Tirico said.
They tried to kill us all with a virus.
The Olympics are on? Who knew?
Clicked on the 11pm news and the opening ceremony was running long. I watched a few minutes and said “lame!” Maybe our tastes have changed over time.
It just wasn’t offering that sense of “one world” like it did in more simple times.
How sweet it is! —Jackie Gleason
I have to admit, I laughed until I was crying at that clip.
Thanks!
That’s the guy.
I haven't watched any of it for a good 20-25 years now.
The last time I even paid attention was when Tonya Harding, who I had a major crush on at the time, skated in the 1994 Olympics.
During that brief period of time, Tonya was the woman of my dreams. I would have treated her way better than that sleaze bag Jeff Gillooly.
US media goes gaga over China. Not interested.
No Nancy?
:-)
I could feel met blood pressure going up when they showed that bastard Xi, and my skin crawled when the soldiers goosestepped with that bloody banner. I like the winter games, though, and I will watch some events out of appreciation for the hard work and talent that got these athletes where they are. If I had been around in 1936, I would have wanted to see Jesse Owens in a newsreel. The so-called People’s Republic can burn in hell, though, along with the Third Reich.
I was more of a Katarina Witt guy.
It will be not just good, but very good if & when the viewership is as small as it was for the 1932 Winter Olympics
I think, according to Dimjo’s history, that is the one where FDR opened the Olympics with a live television broadcast around the world and even on the moon and stars and all the ships at sea.
I can’t remember the last time I’ve tuned.
It’s really a farce now when most of the Athletes that compete for other countries, have actually been living in the US for years.
I laughed till it hurt.
Glad to hear it. Enjoy, NBC!
It’s not political. It’s that you never know what events will be covered, and the commercials are interminable.
I can't picture Nancy going to a demolition derby.
Tonya Harding was the most doable figure skater ever.
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