Final Presidential Debate Draws 63 Million Viewers

By Jon Lafayette
( Broadcasting & Cable )
last updated

Rating down from first Trump-Biden showdown

The Final Presidential Debate
The final presidential debate Thursday was watched by 63 million viewers (Image credit: CNN)

The final presidential debate on Thursday drew just under 63 million viewers, according to Nielsen.

The total fell short of the 73.1 million viewers who tuned in the first time President Trump and former VP Joe Biden squared off.

Related: Fox Beats Debate With Football

The final debate drew a household rating of 20.4, down from 23.7 for the first debate.

Four years ago, the final debate between former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Trump drew 84 million viewers.

Nielsen's figures for 2020 are based on live coverage for 15 networks and includes viewers streaming on connected TVs.

Fox News Channel had the biggest audience with 14.8 million viewers. Among the other big networks, ABC had 10.8 million viewers, NBC had 10.2 million, CNN had 7.2 million, MSNBC had 6.7 million and CBS had 5.5 million.

Jon Lafayette
Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.