This is interesting. Surprising actually. I wonder if there's anything to be divined from this(?). Presidential Debate TV Ratings Reportedly Dropped This Year Updated Sep 30, 2020, 04:24pm EDT Topline Almost 65 million people watched Tuesday night’s presidential debate on several broadcast and cable networks, according to Nielsen ratings, a drop of almost 15% from the record-breaking first debate of 2016. Key Facts 64.7 million people watched the debate on a group of eight broadcast and cable channels, according to preliminary results obtained by CNN. This preliminary figure does not include some live-streaming services and other ways to watch the debate, and the total count is expected to increase Wednesday evening when Nielsen adds in ratings from more channels. The first debate of 2016, by comparison, netted 75.8 million viewers on the same eight channels, though that figure eventually increased to 84 million after more channels were added in, making it the most watched U.S. presidential debate in history. Some, but not all, online streaming services are included in Nielsen ratings, so changing viewer habits could mean the debate’s audience was somewhat larger than preliminary ratings indicate. Key Background The first debate between President Trump and Joe Biden was widely criticized by viewers and pundits alike. Viewers felt the debate was overrun by out-of-control interruptions and insults, most of which were lobbed by Trump. Still, some observers thought the debate could draw a large audience, a prediction that may not prove correct.
Piezoe, are you going to give me an example of things he said - direct quotes or video - that have led you to classify the man as a White Supremacist? Or are you going to dance around the question like you tend to do when backed into a corner on something you feel but cannot prove.
Joe Biden has been denigrating people of various races but, getting away with it for sometime now. Extreme liberal media just giving Joe Biden a pass. That is aside the fact, he has done nothing for blacks in his 47 years in Congress. Senator Tim Scott put it best on what Joe Biden has not done for blacks and how President Donald Trump has done more for the black community.
Debates commission plans to cut off mics if Trump or Biden break rules https://www.cbsnews.com/news/presidential-debates-rules-changes-cutting-microphones/ The commission that oversees the general election presidential debates said Wednesday it will be making changes to the format of the remaining two debates. One key change it plans to implement: Cutting off the microphones of President Trump and Joe Biden if they break the rules, according to a source familiar with the commission's deliberations. The plans have not been finalized and the commission is still considering how it would carry out the plan. The Commission on Presidential Debates is responding to Tuesday's face-off between President Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential nominee, which was marred by frequent interruptions by the president and mud-slinging. In a statement following the presidential debate in Cleveland, Ohio, the first of three scheduled in the run-up to the general election, the commission said the event "made clear that additional structure should be added to the format of the remaining debates to ensure a more orderly discussion of the issues." The CPD will be carefully considering the changes that it will adopt and will announce those measures shortly," the organization said. "The Commission is grateful to Chris Wallace for the professionalism and skill he brought to last night's debate and intends to ensure that additional tools to maintain order are in place for the remaining debates." An informed source told CBS News' Norah O'Donnell the commission will spend the next 48 hours determining new guidelines and rules for the second debate. The organization is working on all possible solutions, but the source said that "we are going to be making changes." At the top of the list is controlling the two candidates' microphones and their ability to interrupt one another and the moderator. The campaigns will be informed of the rules, but the source said the rules will not be subject to negotiation. For the next debate, which is a town hall, there will be only 15-20 people in the hall asking questions. Tim Murtaugh, communications director for the Trump campaign, criticized the commission for the forthcoming measures. "They're only doing this because their guy got pummeled last night," he said in a statement. "President Trump was the dominant force and now Joe Biden is trying to work the refs. They shouldn't be moving the goalposts and changing the rules in the middle of the game." Kate Bedingfield, deputy campaign manager for Biden's campaign, said the former vice president is ready for the next contest in Miami. "The CPD will be carefully considering the changes that it will adopt and will announce those measures shortly," the organization said. "The Commission is grateful to Chris Wallace for the professionalism and skill he brought to last night's debate and intends to ensure that additional tools to maintain order are in place for the remaining debates." An informed source told CBS News' Norah O'Donnell the commission will spend the next 48 hours determining new guidelines and rules for the second debate. The organization is working on all possible solutions, but the source said that "we are going to be making changes." At the top of the list is controlling the two candidates' microphones and their ability to interrupt one another and the moderator. The campaigns will be informed of the rules, but the source said the rules will not be subject to negotiation. For the next debate, which is a town hall, there will be only 15-20 people in the hall asking questions. Tim Murtaugh, communications director for the Trump campaign, criticized the commission for the forthcoming measures. "They're only doing this because their guy got pummeled last night," he said in a statement. "President Trump was the dominant force and now Joe Biden is trying to work the refs. They shouldn't be moving the goalposts and changing the rules in the middle of the game." Kate Bedingfield, deputy campaign manager for Biden's campaign, said the former vice president is ready for the next contest in Miami. "He'll be focused on answering questions from the voters there, under whatever set of rules the Commission develops to try to contain Donald Trump's behavior," she said in a statement. "The president will have to choose between responding to voters about questions for which he has offered no answers in this campaign — or repeating last night's unhinged meltdown." Tuesday night's debate was broken into six 15-minute segments on specific topics. Each candidate was supposed to have two minutes to speak at the beginning of each segment, with the remainder of the time up for grabs. But it quickly spiraled into chaos as moderator and "Fox News Sunday" host Chris Wallace attempted to press the two candidates on issues including the coronavirus crisis, the Supreme Court and the economy. His efforts to restore order to the debate, however, were made more difficult by Mr. Trump's frequent interruptions of both Biden and Wallace, and policy discussions were drowned out by name-calling and personal attacks leveled by both presidential candidates. Biden called Mr. Trump the "worst president America has ever had," a "clown" and told him to "shut up," while the president made unfounded claims about the Democratic presidential nominee's son, Hunter Biden, told the former vice president "there's nothing smart about you" and refused to categorically denounce white supremacists. The chaos of the first debate raised questions as to the effectiveness of the additional two scheduled for October. The second presidential debate is slated for October 15 in Miami, followed by the third and final debate set for October 22 in Nashville.
I am sure this drop is not a measure of who was watching when it started but who watched the entire thing. I spent about 10 minutes watching before I went to baseball and other crappy things to watch as I could not stand the two old farts and Trump huffing and puffing....I am sure the numbers dropped off quickly after first 30 minutes and many did not make it to the end.