08-12-2016, 06:02 PM
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-...l-debates/
Should Trump really be worried about the NFL eating into debate ratings? Considering how insanely popular NFL telecasts are — they perennially dominate lists of the most-watched TV shows — you would think the answer is clearly yes. But the historical evidence isn't so conclusive.
Presidential debates have competed with prime-time NFL games three times since 1992, always against "Monday Night Football." Among 17 total debates, these three rank third, sixth and eighth in viewership — all in the top half.
As you can see, interest in the debates varies widely from one election cycle to the next, so it is also worth examining how debates that clashed with football rated in comparison to others in the same years. In 1992, the football debate drew the second-biggest audience out of three; it was first of three in 2004 and third of three in 2012. There is no pattern, in other words.