NBC sees High Ratings for Bombing Coverage
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Looks like NBC made a good call when it came to airing a prime time special about the Boston Bombings on Monday night.
The shocking bombings in Boston drew viewers to their televisions to find out more about what had happened, and that was evident in the ratings.
A special on NBC about the bombings drew the second-highest rating of any show in primetime.
NBC News’ “Terror in Boston” averaged a 3.1 adults 18-49 rating, according to Nielsen overnights, and 8.9 million total viewers.
NBC was the only Big Four network to air a primetime program focusing on the bombings, which drew a huge amount of attention on the cable news networks and social media as well.
The network preempted an original episode of “Revolution” for the special.
NBC noted that the special did not run in consistent time periods across the country, and so its ratings are subject to significant revision in the final ratings due out this afternoon.
It seemed that other networks may have seen viewership declines in primetime because people were tuning in to cable or otherwise engaged online to get the latest on the events.
One network noted that viewing patterns were “atypical” last night because of the news coverage. A number of Boston and other local affiliates also preempted regular programming to carry bombing coverage.
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