Flagging Interest In National Democratic Convention

The third night of the National Democratic Convention was representative of flagging interest as viewership of the televised proceedings fell sharply. According to data released by Nielsen Media Research, a combined total of just over 24 million viewers watched the convention Wednesday night.

The night before, when Clinton spoke, 25.9 million viewers tuned in to their TV sets, compared to a Day One total viewership of 22.3 million. Eight channels –ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, Fox News Channel, MSNBC, BET, and TV One – covered the program live.

On Wednesday, CNN was distinctly ahead in total viewers during 10-11 p.m. ET, registering 5.38 million viewers, which was a huge 12% jump above the 4.8 million registered Tuesday. Viewers in the 25-54 age category, who are the target group of most advertisers, also showed an increase on the third night exclusively on CNN – rising 21% from the second night to 2.32 million viewers.

Leading the viewership lists has been a milestone in the history of CNN. "It is extraordinary for us to beat the broadcast networks. This signifies what people have known all along about where to get news," said Jon Klein, CNN U.S. president.

NBC in comparison, had 5.36 million in the 10-11 p.m. slot. ABC had 3.48 million, CBS had 3.46 million, Fox had 2.7 million, and MSNBC had 2.3 million, according to data published by Nielsen.

However NBC was actually on air covering the convention until 11:03 p.m., and when those extra three minutes are added in, its average viewership climbs to 5.46 million, which would propel it into first position above CNN.

Nielsen was unable to work out CNN's viewership for those three extra minutes, meaning a clear picture as to the true victor was yet to emerge. CNN was placed second to NBC on the first and second days of the convention.

Among broadcasters, NBC led in viewers for the third straight night from 10-11:03 p.m. But its third night audience declined 9% from Tuesday. NBC had the most viewers at 5.4 million, attaining a 55% edge over its closest competitor CBS. NBC also had the most viewers aged 25-54 among broadcasters. NBC's audience in the 25-54 demographic rose 33%, compared with night three of the 2004 convention.

Wednesday’s ratings show MSNBC's slowing down to a growth of just over 3% to an average of 1.024 million viewers, while Fox News' ratings nosedived 28% to an average of 689,000.

The highlight of the third night of the convention was the keynote address by vice presidential candidate Sen. Joe Biden. Biden, however, drew a slightly smaller audience than Hillary Clinton.