The numbers are in: 51.3 million Americans watched the televised debate between President Biden and former President Donald J. Trump live on Thursday night.
The primetime battle, hosted by CNN and simulcast on more than a dozen networks, was by far the most-watched moment of the 2024 presidential campaign, the kind of mass civic gathering that is increasingly rare in the choose-your-own-news era of media. And the Nielsen figure released Friday, which measures mostly traditional TV sets, didn’t include the likely millions of additional viewers on digital news sites and social media platforms.
The size of the TV audience — comparable to that of an NFL conference championship game — could be grim news for the Biden campaign, given the president’s shaky and stumbling performance, which has caused panic in the upper echelons of the Democratic Party.
But viewership also fell 30 percent from the first Biden-Trump debate in September 2020, which drew more than 73 million viewers. Nielsen said Thursday’s contest in Atlanta was the lowest-rated general election debate since George W. Bush and John Kerry last met in 2004.
Part of the decline can be explained by the timing: The Biden-Trump debate came much earlier in the year than usual, well before many ordinary voters were focused on the election. The overall TV audience is also smaller in the summer, and the number of households with active cable subscriptions has fallen dramatically since 2020.
CNN, which hosted the debate (and provided moderators Dana Bash and Jake Tapper), had the highest viewership of any network, though only just. About 9.5 million people tuned in live on CNN, compared with 9.3 million for Fox News and 9.2 million for ABC.
CNN was the clear winner among adults 25 to 54, the most important group for advertisers. In the 10 p.m. hour, which included a round of post-debate analysis, Fox News overtook CNN in total viewers.
The TV audience for the debate grew older; about two-thirds of viewers were over 55, Nielsen said. Those who tuned in to watch the candidates didn’t: The live TV audience remained about the same throughout the 99-minute broadcast.
For CNN, which has weathered a difficult period of management changes and declining ratings, the debate was a much-needed boost. The network has fallen far behind its rivals; before Thursday’s debate, it was on track for its lowest month in prime time since 1991.
Whether there will be another direct presidential event this year is an open question. The candidates have agreed to meet again on September 10 for a debate sponsored by ABC. But Mr. Biden or Mr. Trump could choose to withdraw from that event, depending on where the race stands after Labor Day.
