Nielsen: 5.5 Million Watch Democratic Debate

[Purveyor]

Source: ASSOCIATED PRESS

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
PUBLISHED: 14:50 EST, 7 March 2016 | UPDATED: 14:50 EST, 7 March 2016

NEW YORK (AP) — CNN reached 5.5 million with Sunday night's presidential debate between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, up from the last two Democratic contests but less than half of the audience for last week's Republican contest.

Although the first Clinton-Sanders contest reached 15.8 million people last fall, last month's debates on CNN and MSNBC both slipped below 5 million in viewership, the Nielsen company said.

From a television standpoint, the Republican encounters have been much more anticipated. Nielsen said nearly 17 million watched the remaining GOP candidates on Fox News Channel last Thursday.

Sunday's event competed against a busy Sunday evening of television, including "The Walking Dead" and the series finale of PBS' "Downton Abbey."



Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/ap/article-3480979/Nielsen-5-5-million-watch-Democratic-debate.html

[Warpy]

1. Sunday night was an incredibly poor choice

It's one of the few nights now that has decent fare on broadcast TV as well as cable.

Wednesdays would be smarter.

[yallerdawg]

3. The day after the primary.

Smarter.

I hear ya!

[FailureToCommunicate]

2. Debbie Wasserman Schultz was watching the final Downton Abbey, and she knew everyone else

would be as well. Great timing.

[yallerdawg]

4. That old saw...

will never go away, will it.

[FailureToCommunicate]

5. You mean you were NOT watching Downton?

[yallerdawg]

7. No, what is that?

Watched the debate, then watched "Walking Dead," then "Talking Dead."

I can watch the debate or read the transcript on the internet now. It doesn't matter when they "broadcast" anymore - if you are interested, you can see it - at your convenience.

[LanternWaste]

12. Post hoc ergo prompter hoc.

Post hoc ergo prompter hoc: A comforting ally of the biased.

[FailureToCommunicate]

13. There is no error in logic of what I said. It was the DNC's error in timing of an important

debate at a time - just like most of the other Dem debates - when many millions FEWER would likely be watching.

Don't believe it? Here are the rating for the OTHER show that was on at the same time they aired the Democratic debate:

9.6 million viewers.

http://www.pbs.org/about/blogs/news/pbs-stations-draw-96-million-viewers-to-bid-farewell-to-downton-abbey-on-masterpiece/

[shanti]

15. Lol, I recorded DA

And watched the debate live, which was riveting. Still, Sunday is a better day for a debate than midweek.

Oh, and DWS can bite me!

[YOHABLO]

6. Oh hell, the whole series of ''Downton Abbey'' will be out on DVD very soon.

I'd rather watch it when I can make restroom runs. I think that people watch the Republican debates because they're so batsh_t crazy it's very entertaining. And that of course is what we've come to in this country ... be entertained at ALL TIMES every minute of every hour.

[canoeist52]

8. 5 million, out of about 150 million registered voters in the U.S.

We could have done better, as Democrats, getting our message out. Why should we want to hide it?

[Doctor Who]

9. You want viewers?

9:00 pm EST. Thursday. Put it online / on demand moments after its done. That way it carries the news cycle till the Sunday morning shows. Sweet Jesus, can I bill Debbie for a consulting fee?

[Doctor_J]

10. The party is trying to hide Mrs Clinton. As long as the issues remain hidden, her entire campaign

can be, "first female president" and "most admired woman", about the only things she can claim on Sanders.

[Angel Martin]

14. The party is trying to hide Mrs Clinton

I think the Party knows what it is doing.

People seemed to like the idea of a Clinton candidacy a lot more than the reality.

[Myrina]

11. Downton Abbey had 9.5 million ...

.... according to PBS.