TV Ratings: CNN’s GOP Debate Garners 23-M Viewers

$FOX

After Fox News’ (NASDAQ:FOX) cable record for the August showdown, interest in the 2016 Presidential election is not wavering.

The GOP is proving to be as big of a draw as the NFL this year.

TV’s 2nd debate among Republican presidential candidates, held Wednesday night at the Reagan Library in Simi Valley, California, pulled in nearly 23-M viewers for CNN between 8:15 and 11:15 p. EDT.

The cable news network’s live telecast of the 11-person showdown marks a Top for CNN. And that comes just a month after the Fox News Channel-hosted debate smashed cable’s non-sports audience record with just north of 24 million viewers.

For CNN, it tops the previous ratings high set more than 20 years ago when Larry King Live aired a special with Ross Perot and Al Gore to the tune of 16.8-M viewers.

CNN had more than a month to pull out all the stops for an the all-but-guaranteed huge audience. FNC’s surprise haul on Aug. 6 set incredibly high ratings expectations for coverage of the 2016 Presidential campaign thanks to Donald Trump.

Wednesday’s debate from Simi Valley, moderated by CNN’s Jake Tapper with assists from Dana Bash and Hugh Hewitt, featured the same cast as the 1st with the addition of Carly Fiorina. And while Donald Trump again got the most  air time at 18 mins, and he was the dominant personality again.

Mr. Trump called on CNN to donate advertising revenue from the debate to US veterans, and considering the marathon-length of the telecast, commercials were not infrequent.

The early debate brought an average 6.3-M viewers, just above the comparable one on Fox News in August.

Stay tuned…

HeffX-LTN

Paul Ebeling

FOX, debate, CNN, Vets, advertising, ratings, viewers, TV, cable, news, GOP

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