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Media Advisory: Final Presidential Debate of 2020 Draws 63 Million Viewers

2 minute read | October 2020

Television Audience Estimates

An estimated 63 million people tuned in to watch the final debate of the 2020 presidential election on Thursday, Oct. 22, 2020. The debate was hosted at Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn., and featured Democratic Presidential Nominee Joe Biden and Republican Presidential Nominee and sitting President Donald Trump.

While coverage varied by network, 15 networks aired live coverage from approximately 9:00 p.m. ET to 11:00 p.m. ET. 

The chart below highlights the sum of the average viewing audience for these networks. It’s important to note that out-of-home (OOH) viewing as well as connected TV (CTV) viewing are included in the 2020 total figures for this advisory. Contribution coming from CTVs can be as much as 11% for televised political events.

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An S&P 500 company, Nielsen has operations in over 90 countries, covering more than 90% of the world’s population. For more information, visit www.nielsen.com.

Contact

Michael Receno

Michael.Receno@Nielsen.com

Sal Tuzzeo

Sal.Tuzzeo@Nielsen.com