Democratic Convention Ratings Fall From 2004
The first night of the Democratic National Convention, featuring an address by Michelle Obama, drew fewer broadcast television viewers than the event four years ago, when former President Bill Clinton kicked things off.
ABC, CBS and NBC brought in 12.1 million viewers in the 10 p.m. hour, down one million from 2004, according to preliminary, fast-national data from Nielsen Media Research. NBC scored the largest audience.
Later in the day, when final broadcast and cable ratings came in, it became clear that the cable news networks’ blanket coverage pushed audiences much higher. ...
That’s what happens when you announce your VP before the convention. Now there’s no reason for anybody but the faithful to watch. The scary part is there’s that many faithful.