Sara Fischer: 67 million watch Trump-Harris presidential debate

September 11, 2024

Source: AXIOS

Written by: Sara Fischer

This piece is by WWSG exclusive thought leader, Sara Fischer.

Roughly 67 million people watched former President Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris’ first presidential debate, per Nielsen — a significant uptick from the 51 million that watched the debate between the GOP nominee and President Joe Biden in June.

Why it matters: Packed with viral moments, the event marked the first time Americans could see Harris go head-to-head with Trump and debate as a presidential candidate.

Yes, but: The ABC News debate still drew far fewer viewers compared to modern general election debates.

The first presidential debate between former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Trump in 2016 drew 84 million viewers on live TV.
The first debate between Trump and Biden in the 2020 general election drew 73 million viewers.

Zoom in: ABC drew the highest number of viewers (19 million) across all broadcast and cable networks that simulcasted the event, followed by NBC (10 million), Fox News (9 million), CBS (6.2 million), MSNBC (6.3 million), CNN (6.1 million) and Fox (4.8 million).

As was the case during the last presidential debate and most political TV events, the vast majority of those who watched the debate live on television were over 55.
While Nielsen ratings do take live TV viewership from streaming services into account, they don’t include viewership from clips on social media.

The big picture: While both debates so far this cycle have drawn fewer viewers than the previous two presidential elections, they still captured large enough audiences to suggest televised presidential debates still matter to the American people.

What to watch: Trump suggested Wednesday morning on Fox News that he isn’t likely to participate in another debate this cycle.

Historically, presidential candidates participated in three general election debates while vice presidential candidates participated in one.
This year marks a diversion from American debate norms. The Commission on Presidential Debates, which has run presidential debates for love three decades, was not involved in either the CNN or ABC News debate this cycle.

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