TV Ratings: NBC's Tokyo Olympics Off To Slow Start

For three straight nights, viewership for the Tokyo Games has been down more than 30% compared to the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in 2016, and the Associated Press reports the network has been hit by a steady stream of bad news regarding American competitors.

The Nielsen company said 16.9 million people watched Sunday night’s coverage on NBC, down 43% from the corresponding night in Rio. Saturday’s audience of 12.6 million was down 39%.

The numbers improve slightly when alternatives are figured in: People could follow the Olympics Sunday night not just on NBC, but also on USA, NBCSN, CNBC and live streaming. Adding in those alternatives lifts NBC’s “total audience delivery” that night to 20 million.

Variety reported Tuesday that NBC Universal is already discussing “make goods” with advertisers, the traditional term for describing how extra ads are given to make up for viewership goals not being met. NBC characterized the discussions with advertisers as standard and not necessarily tied to viewership levels.

While the numbers aren’t Olympian compared to past years, they enabled NBC to easily win the week’s prime time ratings competition with an average of 8.1 million viewers. ABC had 3.5 million, CBS had 2.3 million, Univision had 1.6 million, Fox had 1.3 million, Ion Television had 1.1 million and Telemundo had 950,000.

👉Top 20 Prime Time Shows (Total Viewers): 

1. “Summer Olympics” (Sunday), NBC, 16.86 million.

2. “Summer Olympics” (Saturday), NBC, 12.64 million.

3. NBA Finals: Phoenix at Milwaukee, Game 6, ABC, 12.52 million.

4. “Summer Olympics Opening Ceremony,” NBC, 11.98 million.

5. “Summer Olympics Preview” (Saturday, 8-8:30 p.m.), NBC, 8.74 million.

6. “America’s Got Talent,” NBC, 6.81 million.

7. “60 Minutes,” CBS, 4.57 million.

8. “Celebrity Family Feud,” ABC, 3.9 million.

9. “Big Brother” (Thursday), CBS, 3.874 million.

10. “The Bachelorette,” ABC, 3.865 million.

11. “The $100,000 Pyramid,” ABC, 3.82 million.

12. “America’s Funniest Home Videos,” ABC, 3.52 million.

13. “NBA Countdown,” ABC, 3.51 million.

14. “Big Brother” (Wednesday), CBS, 3.5 million.

15. “Press Your Luck,” ABC, 3.45 million.

16. “NCIS,” CBS, 3.42 million.

17. “American Ninja Warrior,” NBC, 3.34 million.

18. “Big Brother” (Sunday), CBS, 3.31 million

19. “The Neighborhood,” CBS, 3.23 million.

20. “Tucker Carlson Tonight” (Tuesday), Fox News, 3.11 million.

ABC’s “World News Tonight” won the evening news ratings race, averaging 7.5 million viewers. NBC’s “Nightly News” had 6 million and the “CBS Evening News” had 4.6 million.

Fox News Channel led cable networks, averaging 2.05 million viewers in prime time. MSNBC had 1.21 million, HGTV had 1.07 million, USA had 1.05 million and Hallmark had 1.01 million.

👉July Was A Solid Month for FOX News

Fox News Channel is the most-watched network on cable for the month of July 2021. The network also out-performed MSNBC and CNN in total day and prime time among total viewers and adults 25-54 for the fifth consecutive month, reports TV Newser.

In prime time, Fox averaged 2.12 million viewers, and 333,000 in the 25-54 demographic. In total day, FNC earned an average of 1.19 million viewers, and 201,000 adults 25-54.

How does that stack up against comparable months? Compared the prior month (June 2021), the network remained steady in average total prime time audience, posted +1% of its prime time audience from the demo, +1% in average total day viewers, and +3% of its average A25-54 audience across the 24-hour day.

As expected, Tucker Carlson Tonight was the No. 1 cable news show of the month, averaging the most average total viewers (3.02 million) and 520,000 adults 25-54 in July. Hannity ranked No. 2 in cable news in average total viewers (2.7 million). The Five (2.53 million), The Rachel Maddow Show (2.3 million) and The Ingraham Angle (2.07 million) rounded out the top five.