Presidential Debate Ratings History
Presidential debate ratings dropped substantially from 2016 with a 35 decrease in tv viewership.
Presidential debate ratings history. 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. Well over 80 million people tuned in to see hillary clinton and donald trump face off setting a new record in the sixty year history. If history is any indicator fox news will handily sweep cable competitors cnn and msnbc in total average viewers for tuesday night s presidential debate the first between republican incumbent. Still viewership on tuesday night topped all of the debates in 2000 2004 2008 and 2012 and all but one of.
Many critics said afterward that it was the worst debate in modern american history. People sit and watch a broadcast of the first debate between. Monday night was the most watched debate in american history. Fox news tops ratings deadline 84 million is the number to beat for tonight s debate to set a ratings record new york times.
Television households claimed the top household rating of any presidential debate. Various newspapers were contacted and numerous letters were sent in an effort. 28 1980 in their only televised bout of the year jimmy carter and ronald reagan set a still standing presidential debate record with 80 6 million total viewers. In 1956 university of maryland student fred kahn led an effort to bring the two major presidential candidates adlai stevenson the democratic nominee and president dwight eisenhower the republican nominee to the campus for a debate.
The big ratings winner in this year s debate however was fox news channel. The first long awaited presidential debate between donald trump and joe biden beset with insults trump s failure to condemn white supremacists biden attacking trump s record on. Presidential debate viewership falls from 2016 to 73 1 million.