Viewership was up and ratings were down for the thirteenth night of the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
NBC drew a 15.2/26 rating and 24.8 million viewers for the Olympics on Wednesday, the second-lowest rated and the second-least viewed night of the Olympics so far. Compared to the second Wednesday of the 2004 Athens Olympics, the 15.2 rating is off 1% from a 15.3, while the 24.8 million viewers is up 2% from 24.3 million.
The 15.2 rating does mark a 9% increase from a 13.9 for the comparable night of the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
Among the top fifteen markets, Minneapolis-St. Paul led the way with a 23.2/42, while Boston finished last with a 14.1/26. Denver, the #18 market, is the top market for these Olympics, averaging a 24.7/43 through last night. In Tampa/St. Petersburg, the Rays’ game against the Angels performed fairly well, drawing a 5.4/9 opposite the Olympics’ 15.5/26.
Through thirteen nights, NBC is averaging a 16.9/29 rating and 29.0 million viewers for its coverage of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, up 7% and 12% from a 15.8/27 and 26.0 million for the first thirteen nights of the 2004 Athens Olympics. The 16.9 average also marks a 17% increase from a 14.5 through the comparable date of the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
