It wasn’t a top 10 finish, but ºüÀêÊÓƵ still fared well nationally in television viewership for the Paris Olympics, which wrapped up Friday.
According to Nielsen, which measures viewership, 15.7% of the market tuned in on average to KSDK (Channel 5) for NBC’s coverage in the 1-4 p.m. and 7-10 p.m. (ºüÀêÊÓƵ time) blocks. That tied for 13th nationally with Austin, Texas.
New Orleans led the way (18.9 rating), followed by West Palm Beach, Florida (18.5).
ºüÀêÊÓƵ significantly trailed Missouri’s other major market — Kansas City was sixth at 17.1.
This follows KSDK finishing ninth for the previous Olympics, the Winter Games from China in 2022. But the rating this summer was much higher than the number was then, when 8.2% of the market watched. The summer competition traditionally is more watched.
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Nationally, NBC says viewership for the Paris Games averaged a combined 30.6 million per day for its daytime and prime-time coverage, an 82% increase from the previous Summer Olympics — the Tokyo event that was delayed from 2020 to 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Olympics in Japan averaged 16.9 million viewers on the NBC outlets and were mostly held in sterile-looking environments with few people in the venues. With restrictions lifted for Paris, many events were held in an electric atmosphere with historic scenery as the backdrop to create a better TV product.
Paris Olympics television ratings by the numbers
RANK | MARKET | RATING |
---|---|---|
1. | New Orleans | 18.9 |
T-2. | W. Palm Beach, Fla. | 18.5 |
T-2. | Tulsa, Okla. | 18.5 |
4. | Dayton, Ohio | 17.5 |
5. | Minneapolis | 17.3 |
6. | Kansas City | 17.1 |
7. | Oklahoma City | 16.7 |
8. | Ft. Myers, Fla. | 16.2 |
T-9. | Milwaukee | 16.1 |
T-9. | Louisville | 16.1 |
T-9. | Richmond | 16.1 |
12. | Norfolk, Va. | 16.0 |
T-13. | Austin, Texas | 15.7 |
T-13. | ºüÀêÊÓƵ | 15.7 |
15. | Indianapolis | 15.5 |
T-16. | Buffalo | 15.4 |
T-16. | Baltimore | 15.4 |
T-18. | Dallas | 15.2 |
T-18. | Pittsburgh | 15.2 |
20. | Denver | 15.0 |