DEMOCRATS BEAT GOP IN FIRST-NIGHT CONVENTION TV AUDIENCE

A total of 17 million people watched the mostly virtual Republican National Convention’s first night on Monday (Tuesday, August 25, 2020 in Manila) according to Nielsen, fewer than the 19.7 million viewers who watched the first night of the Democratic National Convention, Helen Coster reported for Reuters.

The 17 million RNC number reflects the audience across 11 TV networks between 10 p.m EDT and 11 p.m. EDT and does not include online and streaming viewers. Fox News had the biggest audience, with 7.1 million viewers. Ratings for the first night of the virtual Democratic National Convention reflected viewers across only 10 US TV networks on Aug. 17.

The Republican convention’s first night featured speeches by former U.N. Ambassador and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley; Donald Trump Jr., the president’s oldest son; and Mark and Patricia McCloskey, the St. Louis couple who pointed guns at Black Lives Matter protesters who marched past their home.

Most of the speakers appeared in a nearly empty auditorium in Washington, bowing to the reality of the coronavirus pandemic despite President Donald Trump’s push for a big event in front of thousands of admirers. In making their case for Trump’s re-election on Nov. 3, many speakers portrayed the United States as a country on the verge of chaos after more than three years under Trump (who does not take responsibility for anything), arguing that the election of Democrat Joe Biden would lead to radical socialism and restrictions on Americans’ freedoms.