Logo

Palin Beats Hillary, Biden in Broadcast Ratings

Sep 4, 2008  •  Post A Comment

Alaska governor and vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin’s speech at the Republican National Convention last night drew more than 12.75 million viewers on the three broadcast networks, beating out the audiences that tuned into the Democratic convention last week to watch Sen. Hillary Clinton and Sen. Joe Biden.
Sarah Palin
Preliminary national data from Nielsen Media Research shows that’s slightly ahead of the 12.5 million that saw the broadcast coverage of Sen. Clinton’s call for party unity on night 2 of last week’s Democratic gathering and Sen. Joe Biden’s speech accepting the VP nomination for the Democrats on night 3 of their convention last week.
Gov. Palin’s audience was up from the less than 11 million people who watched former Democrat-turned-Independent Sen. Joe Lieberman Tuesday night on the three broadcast networks’ coverage of the GOP gathering.
It’s also up from the 10.32 million who watched convention specials on the broadcast networks on night 3 of the Republican gathering in 2004.
NBC won the network race at 10 p.m. with an average 7.62 million viewers, according to fast national data from Nielsen Media Research.
ABC finished the three-way broadcast race with an average 5.05 million viewers. CBS was third with 4.63 million viewers.
For updated numbers, click here.
For more election news, visit TVWeek’s Election Navigator page.
(Editor: Baumann)

56 Comments

  1. Supreme Irony Alert: The Slobbering Liberoid Democrat Media Shills for Obama have been floundering in an orgy of smears, lies and gutter politics to destroy Governor Palin.
    They succeeded in getting her the highest ratings in history, uniting the Republican Party, raisiing millions for McCain-Palin, making Mainstream America furious at Liberal Media Bias, and energizing the Conservative base to get the vote out for the election!
    Nice job, morons!

  2. Sad. I am not sure the numbers are added incorrectly on purpose to give the appearance of lesser appeal – hopefully just a typo. The total of NBC, CBS and ABC is 17.3 million not 12.75. I was one of the many and a previous Hillary supporter. Sarah has secured my vote. Shouldn’t have shunned Hillary Barack.

  3. While I don’t agree with ANY politician on ALL of their views, at least with McCain/Palin, I don’t feel like we are handing over the highest office in this country to a man who has NO views with which I agree.
    Mr. Obama, why can’t you admit the truth – the surge worked and if Bush and his TRUE cronies had listened to McCain in 2003, this entire war issue could well be moot?
    Vote for real change, people. McCain/Palin ’08

  4. After a week of the most intensely saturated media hype of the year….
    She still can’t beat Obama:
    http://apnews.myway.com/article/20080904/D92VMR981.html
    Palin is a fart in a stiff wind.

  5. *yawn*
    See you at Obama’s Inauguration.

  6. Obama got close to 40 million. And despite all of the hype, all of the endless promotion, only 12.75 million people tuned in to watch Sarah Palin’s speech?
    Ouch.
    Someone’s going to be fired.

  7. Never mind. I just saw the updated numbers.
    I thought those seemed awfully low.

  8. Well, well, well… I see we still have some people out there (comments at the bottom of the page) who fail to lift their heads out of the buried sand.
    I was right in the middle until lasts night speech by Sarah Palin and found her to be 100 times the woman Hillary Clinton is – or should I say was… She cannot hold a candle to Sarah Palin!!! I am so excited to see this happening and am truly impressed by McCains choice.
    I would have figured all the folks who have been Obama bamboozled would see the light – that executive experience really shines in this case… Biden who?

  9. Good. Those numbers are low. Alot of Dems are still not crazy about Clinton but my son said she did a great job of uniting the Country. The only one I wanted to watch was Obama and he knocked it out of the park!
    Tried to sit through Palin’s speech. Can she do more than name call? Where was the substance?

  10. Please TV Week! Compare apples with apples if you’re going to quote numbers – or at least give a reasonable reference! You should be ashamed – what is media bias? Please see below:
    Sarah Palin’s speech wins TV ratings battle in landslide
    By RICHARD HUFF
    DAILY NEWS TV EDITOR
    Thursday, September 4th 2008, 3:37 PM
    Acker/Bloomberg
    Sarah Palin waves to the crowd – which included almost 38 million television viewers.
    Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin proved Wednesday night she could deliver a good speech – and a huge audience.
    An estimated 37.24 million viewers tuned into six networks measured by the Nielsen Company to see the vice presidential nominee’s speech before the Republican National Convention.
    The numbers were just short of the 38.37 million people who tuned in to see Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama address the Democractic National Convention last Thursday, which aired on 10 networks.
    She also topped Obama’s vice presidential pick, Sen. Joe Biden, who drew just 24.02 million viewers, and Sen. Hillary Clinton, who averaged 25.9 million, in appearances at the DNC a week before, according to Nielsen.
    Palin’s speech had been widely anticipated because it was her first nationally televised comments since being named McCain’s running mate, and the first since she revealed her 17-year-old daughter Bristol was five-months pregnant.

  11. thank goodness the clintons are not in the political climate anymore.. they promised to fix healthcare but instead made it beyond worse…they lied about their finances and just about everything else they touched..for god sake he was impeached…why would we want a clinton in the white house again geo bush was in office for about a minute before we were attacked on 911. then the republicans have to play clean up for 8 years of failed leadership and security.. then hillary says the war is wrong .omg am i the only one who feels that the clintons are simply ridiculous? my only feeling of justice served to the horrible clintons is gov sarah palin.haha hillary

  12. I honestly don’t see this as big news, or a big deal for Republicans to celebrate. Who knew anything about Sarah Palin? Why wouldn’t Americans tune in to try to see who she is, since she has been picked as a VP candidate? At this late stage in the game to be introducing someone so new and so lacking in national exposure, I think is rather irresponsible. I think it would be even more irresponsible for American voters to not do their due diligence on all of the candidates, especially this one.
    Since this was the first opportunity the nation had to see this unknown individual, every American voter should have all been watching.

  13. I salute all Democrats across the country and my advice to all is that we should work hard for our own Presidential candidate Barak Obama because we can`t aford another 4 good years of failed policies.John McCain is just proud to have been a soldier and to have faced challenges like other`s,not only him in the America history,the bottom line is that John McMcain canot be the president because he is very old and his mind is full of military issues,while common people are surfering economicaly on the ground.You just heard what he was talking about in his speech…not interesting at all.OBAMA is a God send to American`s and we`ll vote for him.

  14. Why is it the press is so anxious to tear into Sarah? Why do they have to know about so many things? I did not hear anyone ask Bobby Kennedy many years ago about his 10 children. How about the great woman Nancy Pelosi and her 5 children and the role of one of the most important woman in the world. While the Republican convention may have been short of the 80,000 seat stadium there was a delight in the convention and now across the nation.

  15. Sarah Palin is amazing! For once in my life, I have gotten to see a politician say it like it is. She really seems so down to earth on issues and ideology. She and McCain make a great team and I think that they could hit themselves a homerun to the white house! Both have a history of reaching across party lines, but where was Obama during this? Oh yeah, that’s right, he was in make-up for his show. Obama needs to get over himself if he wants to win this election. The Americans are getting really sick of his ego.

  16. Thank you Sarah Palin you speak for millions of American women who are shouted out by mouthy pro-choice advocates responsible for the killing of 40 million innocent unborn children.
    Sarah Palin speaks for millions of women around the world.

  17. I have not been impressed with the Republican party specifically the Bush Administration, but after listening to Governor Palin and John McCain I am thouroughly impressed with this ticket. IT SCARES ME TO DEATH that someone as inexperienced as Obama who lacks the sincerity to admit the most obvious truths could even come this close to the Presidency! McCain/Palin CONGRATULATIONS! you guys have secured my vote go fight in Washington for the American people, I know you will!

  18. Secretly, everyone wants to see a train wreck. Palin is no genius, but an interesting disaster. She flails and the American public love watching it.

  19. Zune and iPod: Most people compare the Zune to the Touch, but after seeing how slim and surprisingly small and light it is, I consider it to be a rather unique hybrid that combines qualities of both the Touch and the Nano. It’s very colorful and lovely OLED screen is slightly smaller than the touch screen, but the player itself feels quite a bit smaller and lighter. It weighs about 2/3 as much, and is noticeably smaller in width and height, while being just a hair thicker.

  20. Colton Tooley, 19, most likely was the gunman involved in the occurrence on the University of Texas today, what’s happening to This country?

  21. Zune and iPod: Most people compare the Zune to the Touch, but after seeing how slim and surprisingly small and light it is, I consider it to be a rather unique hybrid that combines qualities of both the Touch and the Nano. It’s very colorful and lovely OLED screen is slightly smaller than the touch screen, but the player itself feels quite a bit smaller and lighter. It weighs about 2/3 as much, and is noticeably smaller in width and height, while being just a hair thicker.

  22. This is good info! Where else can if ind out more?? Who runs this joint too? Keep up the good work 🙂

  23. Interesting thoughts here. I appreciate you taking the time to share them with us all. It’s people like you that make my day 🙂

  24. You make blogging look like a walk in the park! I’ve been trying to blog daily but I just cant find writing material.. you’re an inspiration to me and i’m sure many others!

  25. Interesting layout on your blog. I really enjoyed reading it and also I will be back to read more in the future.

  26. Dreamin. I love blogging. You all express your feelings the right way, because they are your feeling, focus on your blog it is great.

  27. Very okay. agree with most people

  28. This is good info! Where else can if ind out more?? Who runs this joint too? Keep up the good work 🙂

  29. cling on to

  30. I love the way you write and also the theme on your blog. Did you code this yourself or was it done by a professional? I’m very very impressed.

  31. I keep

  32. I will not debate along with your endings simply I feel you are precise on the money! You’ve put together a valid case for your opinions and now I know particulars on this unique topic. Provides Thank you for this impressive publish and i arrive back for more.

  33. I am moved by the way you mastered this topic. It is not often I come across a blog with hypnotic articles like yours. I will make a note of your feed to stay up to date with your hereafter updates.Just brilliant and do preserve up the effective work.

  34. This is the best blog I’ve ever seen in my life! I really appreciate you taking the time out of your busy day to share your this with everyone.

  35. Sorry for the huge review, but I’m really loving the new Zune, and hope this, as well as the excellent reviews some other people have written, will help you decide if it’s the right choice for you.

  36. Great wordpress blog here.. It’s hard to find quality writing like yours these days. I really appreciate people like you! take care and see you soon

  37. I agree with your thoughts here and I really love your blog! I’ve bookmarked it so that I can come back & read more in the future.

  38. Hey how are you doing? I just wanted to stop by and say that it’s been a pleasure reading your blog. I have bookmarked your website so that I can come back & read more in the future as well. plz do keep up the quality writing

  39. Hi, I just wanted to let you all know that there is a project being conducted at Harvard trying to compile the most effective arguments for and against Wikileaks. I think it’s a brilliant idea and would be an interesting read for many of you. http://www.voteonwikileaks.com

  40. Interesting thoughts here. I appreciate you taking the time to share them with us all. It’s people like you that make my day 🙂

  41. Insightful info:) I am going to need a bit of time to ponder the article.

  42. I agree with your thoughts here and I really love your blog! I’ve bookmarked it so that I can come back & read more in the future.

  43. Interesting thoughts here. I appreciate you taking the time to share them with us all. It’s people like you that make my day 🙂

  44. Nice blog subject. thanks for letting me add something!

  45. Nice!! Great Ifo. Great People. Great Blog. Thank you for all the great sharing that is being done here.

  46. Between me and my husband we’ve owned more MP3 players over the years than I can count, including Sansas, iRivers, iPods (classic & touch), the Ibiza Rhapsody, etc. But, the last few years I’ve settled down to one line of players. Why? Because I was happy to discover how well-designed and fun to use the underappreciated (and widely mocked) Zunes are.

  47. If you’re still on the fence: grab your favorite earphones, head down to a Best Buy and ask to plug them into a Zune then an iPod and see which one sounds better to you, and which interface makes you smile more. Then you’ll know which is right for you.

  48. This is getting a bit more subjective, but I much prefer the Zune Marketplace. The interface is colorful, has more flair, and some cool features like ‘Mixview’ that let you quickly see related albums, songs, or other users related to what you’re listening to. Clicking on one of those will center on that item, and another set of “neighbors” will come into view, allowing you to navigate around exploring by similar artists, songs, or users. Speaking of users, the Zune “Social” is also great fun, letting you find others with shared tastes and becoming friends with them. You then can listen to a playlist created based on an amalgamation of what all your friends are listening to, which is also enjoyable. Those concerned with privacy will be relieved to know you can prevent the public from seeing your personal listening habits if you so choose.

  49. I love your blog.. very nice colors & theme. Did you create this website yourself or did you hire someone to do it for you? Plz reply back as I’m looking to create my own blog and would like to know wheere u got this from. thanks

  50. This is good info! Where else can if ind out more?? Who runs this joint too? Keep up the good work 🙂

  51. This is getting a bit more subjective, but I much prefer the Zune Marketplace. The interface is colorful, has more flair, and some cool features like ‘Mixview’ that let you quickly see related albums, songs, or other users related to what you’re listening to. Clicking on one of those will center on that item, and another set of “neighbors” will come into view, allowing you to navigate around exploring by similar artists, songs, or users. Speaking of users, the Zune “Social” is also great fun, letting you find others with shared tastes and becoming friends with them. You then can listen to a playlist created based on an amalgamation of what all your friends are listening to, which is also enjoyable. Those concerned with privacy will be relieved to know you can prevent the public from seeing your personal listening habits if you so choose.

  52. Absolutely everyone in W isconsin hates that f*cking logo.

  53. Dairtel? And that nasty, squashed sort is kerned to tightly! That is certainly all I got.

  54. This is good info! Where else can if ind out more?? Who runs this joint too? Keep up the good work 🙂

  55. Hey how are you doing? I just wanted to stop by and say that it’s been a pleasure reading your blog. I have bookmarked your website so that I can come back & read more in the future as well. plz do keep up the quality writing

  56. I really like the colors here on your blog. did you design this yourself or did you outsource it to a professional?

Your Comment

Email (will not be published)