If you can really judge the health of an election campaign based on relative crowd sizes, Presidential candidate Kamala Harris is off to a good start, with night 1 of the Democratic National Convention averaging 20.025 million viewers and 15.003 households, according to Nielsen.

Both benchmarks compared favorably to night 1 of the Republican National Convention on July 15, which averaged 18.130 viewers and 13.2 million households.

Kicking off live on  ABC, CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, PBS and other outlets, Monday nights DNC broadcast extended into the wee hours and culminated with what was effectively a goodbye speech for President Joseph Biden.

Night 1 of the DNC also compared favorably with the first night of the 2020 Democratic National Convention, which averaged 15.338 million viewers. (Nielsen has a fully ratings report on that viewership performance, as well as July's RNC TV ratings.

The RNC event culminated on July 18 with lengthy, rambling appearance by Republican nominee Donald Trump. It averaged 25.381 million viewers across networks. 

Fox News’ coverage of the Republican and Democratic National Conventions helped the news network finish August as the most watched network in both primetime and total day, according to Nielsen.

Fox News averaged a network 3.6 million viewers in primetime for the period of July 27 to Aug. 30 to top all networks for the eighth consecutive month, according to Nielsen. MSNBC averaged 2.1 million viewers to finish second followed by CNN with 1.6 million viewers. 

HGTV was the most watched entertainment-based network during the month with 1.3 million viewers, followed by TLC with 1.2 million watchers. TNT and ESPN -- boosted by the return of live Major League Baseball and National Basketball Association games -- finished sixth and seventh respectively, followed by Hallmark Channel (889,000 viewers), TBS (861,000) and History (789,000), said Nielsen. 

On the total day front, Fox News topped the charts for the 50th straight month, averaging 1.7 million viewers and topping in order MSNBC, CNN, HGTV, and TNT, said Nielsen.  

The final night of the Democratic National Convention on Thursday drew 24.6 million viewers, down 5% from four years ago, but the most viewed evening of this year’s event according to Nielsen.

With Joe Biden addressing the country, the virtual convention drew a 15.6 household rating, down from a 16.6 in 2016.

There were 1.5 million viewers in the 18- to 34-year-old demographic, down from 2.4 four years ago, and 17.1 million people 55 and up, down from 15.4.

Nielsen’s ratings cover 10 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. ET, which 12 networks aired live coverage.

MSNBC had the most total viewers with 6.1 million during the 10 pm.-11:15 p.m. ET time period. CNN had 5.6 million viewers and Fox News Channel had 3 million. 

Among the broadcasters, ABC had 3 million viewers, followed by NBC with 2.2 million and CBS with 2 million.

In the 25-54 demo, used by most news advertisers, CNN had 1.7 million viewers, followed by MSNBC at 1.2 million, ABC with 799,000, Fox News with 639,000, NBC with 568,000, and CBS with 473 million.

Ed O’Keefe, CBS News political correspondent, has been covering the national political conventions since 2004. He reported on the last bunch for the Washington Post, and the 2020 Democratic confab is his first for CBS News, which he joined in 2018. 

The Democratic convention is in Milwaukee, and O’Keefe is in Wilmington, Del., as are Joseph Biden and Kamala Harris. “For my first one as a television reporter, I had all these visions of what it would be like,” said O’Keefe. 

The reality is not quite matching his visions. “It’s entirely different,” he said. “It’s bittersweet.”

The CBS News gang is at the Hyatt Place on the Christina River in Wilmington. “I don’t think I have a single person in Milwaukee,” said Susan Zirinsky, CBS News president.

Wilmington is where the action is. Biden accepts the Dems’ presidential nomination from the city Thursday. Harris spoke Wednesday. “We are at the news hub, the ground zero of it,” O’Keefe said. “The decision making is here, the decision makers are here.”

Zirinsky cited “a small contingent” for CBS News in Wilmington, smaller than what the network would send to a natural disaster, such as a tornado or wildfire. Correspondent Nikole Killion is pitching in from Wilmington too. 

What makes it bittersweet is that the conventions are career-defining events for reporters, and remote conventions don’t likely have the same urgency. The New York Times described the Dem bash as taking place “in a Milwaukee of the mind.”

O’Keefe spoke about blockbuster convention moments, whether it was Barack Obama, then an Illinois state senator, speaking at the Democratic convention in Boston in 2004, and VP hopeful Sarah Palin introducing herself to the nation in St. Paul in 2008. “It’s fun, it’s exciting, it’s high stakes,” O’Keefe said. “It’s the moment that draws the largest crowd to your work.”

Norah O’Donnell, CBS Evening News anchor, said it’s the first time in 20 years she hasn’t been at a convention, delivering the news this week from the newscast’s Washington base with Milwaukee in virtual mode. Before anchoring CBS Evening News, she was co-host on CBS This Morning. Before that, she was chief White House correspondent for the network. 

“I always believe that getting to the scene of an event is incredibly important,” she said. “Talking to someone face-to-face--one of the candidate’s senior advisors, the campaign chairman, the speechwriter--that gives you a lot more texture, and the ability to report out a story.”

Remote or not, O’Donnell said the conventions hold “enormous” news value. “You get the clearest distillation of a party’s argument about why they should win the presidency,” she said after her Wednesday evening broadcast. “Think about all of the hours that go into not only developing a party platform but also curating the speeches given in primetime to what may be the largest audience they’ll ever receive across broadcast and cable networks.” 

Zirinsky said the breathless pace of news in 2020 has heightened interest in the conventions, and the election, among viewers. “I think we’re at a critical time in our country,” she said, citing three “mega-issues” in Covid, racial equality battles and the plunging economy. “There are such tremendous issues facing every single American.”

Covering the convention in the 10 p.m. hour Tuesday, NBC and ABC got 0.3s in viewers 18-49, per Nielsen overnight ratings. CBS, with reruns leading into coverage, got a 0.2. Wednesday, NBC led with a 0.4 at 10 p.m., with ABC and CBS at 0.3. 

Target-Rich Environment

The conventions are also giant networking opportunities for the press, and a chance to meet what O’Keefe called “the next generation” in political leadership--the mayor who will end up the governor, the state senator who may end up the president. “There are very few other opportunities for political reporters to do this,” he said, mentioning how a chance meeting on the pretzel line can turn into a big scoop years later. 

O’Donnell noted how the Dems’ VP pick was not leaked this summer, as normally happens. She attributed that to reporters working remotely, not sharing facetime with Biden staff. “Some people like to talk,” she said. “There’s a natural inclination to socialize.”

The 2020 election is like none O’Donnell has covered, citing foreign interference, relentless social media and the pandemic as factors. “This will be the Super Bowl of elections for a lot of different reasons,” she said. “It’s the most difficult election I’ve ever had to cover.”

Time will tell how much the remote conventions affect the way the quadrennial events are conducted. O’Keefe does not see them disappearing, citing the “massive fundraising opportunity” they represent. But surely the stripped-down affairs in 2020 will make their mark on future conventions. Zirinsky said it’s unlikely they “go back to being extravaganzas.”

BBQ Bonhomie 

CBS News has rented space in the parking lot of the Hyatt Place in Wilmington. One tent is for the live shots. Another has grills set up for communal meals--sausage and peppers, burgers and hot dogs. O’Keefe has copped to mixed feelings this week in Wilmington, but sharing grub with colleagues has warmed his heart. 

“A little bit of fellowship with co-workers,” is how he described it. “None of us have been able to do this for five months now. For me, it’s therapeutic, almost.”

The Republicans hold their convention Aug. 24-27. It happens in Charlotte, but much of the action will take place in Washington, where CBS Evening News shifted to in December. O’Donnell called the DC move “a genius stroke” by Zirinsky, giving the newscast a front-row seat for President Trump’s impeachment and his handling of the pandemic, the anchor getting time with White House coronavirus coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx, Surgeon General Jerome Adams and Dr. Anthony Fauci. 

Now CBS Evening News has a front-row seat for the historic election. 

Zirinsky said CBS News’ plans for the GOP convention are evolving. “We’re still working out the details,” she said. 

 Day 2 of the virtual Democratic National Convention drew 19.2 million people, down slightly from Day 1 and down 25% from 2016, according to Nielsen.

With speakers including former President Bill Clinton and ex-Secretary of State Colin Powell, the DNC drew a 12.6 household rating, compared to an 8.4 four years ago.

Among the younger voting demographic--people 18 to 34--941,000 people tuned in, down more than 50% from 2.02 million in 2016.

That contrasts to the 13.971 people 55 plus that watched. That was down from 15.3 million 

Nielsen measured viewing on 10 networks from 10 p.m. ET to 11:15 p.m. The networks included ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, CNN, CNNe, Fox Business, Fox News Channel, MSNBC and Newsy.

The first day of the Democrats’ virtual National Convention on Monday drew 19.7 million viewers, down from nearly 26 million four years ago, according to Nielsen.

Nielsen counted people watching 10 networks, which covered the convention speeches by former First Lady Michelle Obama and Sen. Bernie Sanders from about 10 p.m. until 11:15 p.m. ET 

The Democrats drew a household rating of 12.7, down from 16.6 in 2016. 

Among people 18-34, the rating was a 1.6, down from 3.5. In the 35-54 age range, the rating was 5.0, down from 8.8 and people 55 plus generated a 15.1 rating, down from 17.9.

Nielsen included 2020 viewing from ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, CNN, CNNe, Fox Business Network, Fox News Channel, MSNBC and Newsy. Newsy and PBS weren’t included a year ago.

The Democratic National Convention Committee (DNCC) is promoting online streaming of the Democratic National Convention, which starts Monday.  

No surprise there since it is the first-ever virtual convention and the DNCC is providing its own curated coverage. But while the proceedings are being covered on broadcast and cable TV as well, a DNC promo video clearly puts a thumb on the scale for over-the-top, making the TV watcher (singular) appear older school and behind the curve. 

In its "How Are You Going to Watch the Democratic National Convention" YouTube video (below), the DNC features engaged, upbeat people talking about watching the convention by streaming it on Amazon Fire, Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Prime, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Amazon Echo, Twitch, or the DNCC site. 

The comic relief comes from a "dad" on the couch who appears clueless. When asked where he is going to watch the convention he goes "huh?"--while a graphic explains, parenthetically, "probably on television," accompanied by a mocking emoji.

At least former Republican Governor John Kasich, who is supporting Democrat Joe Biden and speaking at the convention in support of the Democratic ticket Monday night, sent out an e-mail Monday saying folks could either watch it on TV (first option) or on the DNCC Web site.

CNN delivered 6.17 million total viewers during 10 and 11:45 p.m. from the Democratic National Convention, including 2.16 million in the 25-54 age bracket.

That topped cable rivals MSNBC, at 4.92 million total and 1.41 million in the 25-54 demo, and Fox News at 2.39 million and 662,000, respectively.

NBC was tops among broadcasters at 4.15 million total viewers and 1.5 million adults 25-54.

The Philadelphia wingding featured speeches from President Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and VP hopeful Tim Kaine, all singing the praises of Democrat nominee Hillary Clinton.

Read more at broadcastingcable.com.

As expected, the Democratic National Convention drew an online crowd on day three in terms of social media attention on Twitter, blowing away the competition

According to Nielsen Social, the convention was the most-Tweeted about TV show of the night Wednesday (July 27), with 2,600,000 tweets from 549,000 "unique authors."

That was up from 1,657,000 Tweets from 389,000 uniques on day two.

Day three (actually night three) featured speeches by President Barack Obama, vice presidential candidate Tim Kaine and former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

The most convention-related activity on Twitter happened at 11:14 p.m. during the President's speech, when there were 23,600 Tweets in a one-minute span.

The Tweets are counted across all networks, so a roadblocked broadcast like the convention will have a definite advantage. They cover three hours before the earliest prime time telecast (8 p.m.) to three hours after the end (11 p.m.) of the last telecast prime time telecast, so 5 p.m. to 2 a.m.).

Rounding out the top five for the night in Tweet-abouts were CBS' Big Brother with 41,000 Tweets from 12,000 uniques; NBC's America's Got Talent, 23,000/10,000; Greenleaf on OWN at 18,000/4,000; and Mr. Robot on USA at 17,000/7,000.

Day two of the Democratic convention (Tuesday, July 26), with speakers including Elizabeth Warren, Cory Booker and former President Bill Clinton, continued to dominate the list of most-Tweeted TV shows according to Nielsen Social, but was down markedly from the first night, which featured Michelle Obama and Bernie Sanders' much anticipated reconciliation speech.

Tuesday night's coverage on broadcast and cable nets drew a total of 1,657,000 Tweets from 389,000 unique authors, more than ten times its nearest competitor, WWE SmackDown on USA Networks with 133,000 from 33,000 uniques.

Rounding out the top five were The Bachelorette on ABC with 110,000/53,000; America's Got Talent on NBC at 46,000/20,000 and Scream on MTV with 33,000/6,000.

Day three's combination of President Barack Obama, Vice Presidential candidate Tim Kaine and former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg is likely to best that Day two number. Totals will be released later today (July 28).

 Last night’s Democratic National Convention coverage averaged 24.7 million viewers across seven networks, according to Nielsen.

The second night of the convention – which featured former President Bill Clinton’s speech -- fell short of the 25.9 million viewer across ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, Fox Business Network, Fox News and MSNBC that tuned into the first night, and below the 25.1 million viewers that tuned into the second day of the 2012 Democratic convention, Nielsen said.

CNN was the most watched network of the night, averaging 5.9 million viewers, followed by NBC’s 5.2 million viewers and MSNBC’s 3.8 million watchers, said Nielsen.

The Democratic National Convention was the most-Tweeted TV show Monday night (July 25) with 3.3 million Tweets sent by 693,000 people, according to Nielsen Social. It obviously benefitted from being roadblocked on multiple networks.

That Tweet total was almost exactly double that of the Republicans' first day, which drew 1.645 million tweets from 449,000 people, still the most-Tweeted show by a mile on that night (July 18).

The Dems had an all-star lineup on their first day, including Michelle Obama and the much-anticipated reconciliation speech from Bernie Sanders, which might explain the particularly heavy Tweet load versus the GOP's less star-studded initial outing.

The Democratic convention's Twitter activity spiked at 10:31--when broadcast nets as well as cable were covering the proceedings--following the speech by First Lady Michelle Obama, when 30,400 Tweets were sent in a single minute.

Rounding out the top five Tweeted-about TV shows of the night were The Bachelorette at 270,000 Tweets by 112,000 people; WWE Monday Night Raw on USA with 266,000 by 47,000 people; Love & Hip Hop; Atlanta on VH1 with 111,000/33,000; and Are you the One? on MTV at 19,000/6,000.

In case political junkies didn’t have enough content to tap into during the national conventions, Comcast’s X1 platform will be making sure there's no shortage of options. 

Comcast said is loading its X1 platform with “hundreds of hours” of past and present election content amid the Republican National Convention (RNC), which kicks off today in Cleveland and the Democratic National Convention (DNC), which gets underway in Philadelphia next week.

Comcast said its RNC and DNC VOD fare will provide a hub for convention speeches, Town Hall sessions, and debates, featuring curated content from NBC News, MSNBC, C-SPAN, CNN, Fox News, PBS, MTV, Comedy Central, as well as some short-form web video from Comcast’s ad-supported OTT service.

In addition to content from the upcoming conventions, the MSO noted that X1 will also offer access to every presidential candidate acceptance speech dating back to 1948.

Comcast is deploying about 40,000 X1 boxes per day, and expects to have about half of its video subscriber base on the platform by the end of 2016.

Comcast will also feature curated political fare, including the historical speeches, election news and highlights from the RNC and DNC, at its Election Central microsite.

YouTube, meanwhile, announced that it will again serve as the “official” live streaming provider for the RNC and DNC.

In a new twist, YouTube will also be streaming content in 360-degree format and supplying some mobile live streaming in partnership with YouTube creators such as The Young Turks, Complex News, Seeker Daily, Ingrid Nilsen, Mark  Watson, and Julie Borowski.

Multicultural entertainment networks are prepping for the biggest entertainment event of the summer: the Democratic and Republican conventions, and their respective presumptive presidential nominees, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump.

This month, networks such as Fuse, Revolt, BET and TV One will provide both TV and digital coverage of the Republican National Convention in Cleveland (July 18-21) and the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia (July 25-28).

Providing news coverage through a multicultural lens — especially during an important and unpredictable campaign season — should appeal to the networks’ target viewers despite the channels’ entertainment-programming pedigrees, network executives said.

“I think the landscape for this particular election season is uncharted territory,” Fuse Media CEO Michael Schwimmer said. “We have candidates on both sides that are controversial, and particularly on the Republican side, with regard to the Hispanic community. I don’t think we’ve seen this kind of change and acrimony in a way that so directly effects our audience.”

Fuse will air segments from the convention both on its air and online. They will be reported by correspondents Arlene Santana and James Villalobos, who were chosen by Fuse viewers last month as part of the network’s “Crash the Parties” initiative with nonprofit political organization Voto Latino, Schwimmer said.

Having covered the 2008 and 2012 conventions, Schwimmer added that there is far more interest among young viewers this year than in the previous elections.

“The interest in both candidates, along with the explosion of social media over the past eight years, makes this a better experience for us as an organization and for viewers who will get that content multiple ways,” Schwimmer said.

TV One president and CEO Brad Siegel said the network’s live daily coverage from the convention floors, via morning news program News One Now with Roland Martin, will provide its African-American audience with a more in-depth look at the issues important to them.

The show’s website, newsone.com, will also offer live reports from the conventions.

“Viewers expect us to be covering the most important news of the day, and be able to interpret and ask the questions of the newsmakers regarding how their politics affects African-Americans,” he said. “That’s our job — to ask the questions from a perspective that no one else is asking, and our viewers expect us to represent their point of view, their situations and how their policies affect their lives.”

Coverage of the conventions won’t be limited to what’s happening in the arenas. Revolt TV chief political correspondent Amrit Singh said he plans to complement the network’s convention coverage with reports from outside the proceedings, where major protests are expected.

“The story there is not only what’s happening in the convention halls but very much what’s happening in the streets,” he said.

As part of Revolt’s “Revolt 2 Vote” initiative, the network will feature live segments from the convention floor that will air on the network’s daily Revolt Live show as well as on network website revolt.tv, Singh said. The network will also break into regularly scheduled programming during the conventions to offer live updates and interviews from the convention floors, he added.

“These conventions are really four-day reality shows,” Singh said. “This is really an opportunity to galvanize the attention of our audience.”

Myx Tv general manager Miguel Santos added that a diverse offering of voices and images on television helps to assure that all voters have a chance to have their issues and concerns heard. 

“It’s important for multicultural networks to ensure that their viewers feel like they have a voice and their needs are being addressed,” said Santos, whose network is in process of planning its on-air and online election coverage.

“You’ll hear presidential candidates say ‘We have the African-American, Latino and event the LGBTQ+ vote’ but rarely is there a mention of Asian Americans," he added. "Our viewers need to know that  they can and should demand more attention because their votes matter too.”

Comcast says it is donating $1.5 million in airtime to run PSA's promoting the 2016 LGBT Equality Forum (equality.com).

Comcast is the lead sponsor of the three-day event, which is held during the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia--Comcast is headquartered in Philadelphia.

The PSA is already airing across Comcast markets and will continue through the conference (the end of July).

The event includes legal and political panels, awards, and the dedication of two historic markers.

“We take great pride in our support of the LGBT community and of a diverse and inclusive workforce,” said David Cohen, senior Executive VP of Comcast as well as a special advisor to the Democratic National Convention (he is former top aide to former Philadelphia Democratic mayor (and later governor, Ed Rendell, who is chairing the 2016 Democratic convention. “Through the support of events like the Equality Forum, Comcast NBCUniversal continues to invest in creating a business culture where diverse perspectives and ideas help drive innovation.”