Sunday Ratings: Olympic Closing Ceremony Up in Double Digits From Beijing

By On 08/13/2012 · 16 Comments · In American Idol

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NBC may have butchered the Olympic Closing Ceremony last night, but it still cleaned up in the ratings! Check out the numbers from TVByTheNumbers.

On NBC the closing ceremonies of the XXX Olympic Games, earned a 9.1 rating from 8:30-11PM,  up  32% from the Fast Nationals of the Closing Ceremonies four years ago in Beijing. Earlier in the night, the London Gold  special earned a 5.7 adults 18-49 rating.

7:00 PM

NBC London Gold (7-8:30PM) 5.7 18 20.839
CBS PGA Overrun/60 Minutes 1.0 4 5.977
ABC America’s Funniest Home Videos -R 0.9 3 4.242
FOX American Dad -R 0.8 3 1.881

7:30 PM

FOX Cleveland Show -R 1.0 3 2.095

8:00 PM

CBS 60 Minutes/Big Brother 1.9 6 5.646
FOX The Simpsons -R 1.5 4 3.039
ABC Secret Millionaire 1.0 3 3.794

8:30PM

NBC XXX Olympics Closing Ceremony (8:30-11PM) 9.1 23 30.569
FOX Cleveland Show -R 1.4 4 2.871

9:00PM

FOX Family Guy -R 1.8 5 3.644
CBS Big Brother/Criminal Minds-R 1.0 3 3.565
ABC Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition (9-11) 0.9 2 2.821

9:30 PM

FOX American Dad -R 1.6 4 3.308

10:00PM

CBS Criminal Minds -R /The Mentalist -R 0.7 2 3.658

 
  • Anonymous

    I love how excellence is rewarded. Oh wait this is NBC’s Olympic coverage being discussed, carry on.

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_SYFK77IYLRQIVATQ2MJKSW2J7Y Pam

    I watched the majority of the London Gold Special last night.  It was great to be able to look back the accomplishments of our talented US athletes especially our ladies!  However, both the males and females this year in their choice of sport were extremely talented.

    After I heard about the lineup for the closing ceremonies, I wasn’t really interested in watching so I tuned into something else. 

  • http://twitter.com/doesmonaknow DoesMonaKnow

    NBC’s coverage won’t change unless some development comes along to make the TV coverage now obsolete.

    The next Summer Olympics takes place only an hour ahead of Eastern time so there will be more live events in primetime, though the more western time zones are still out of luck.

  • V Jemmy

    I had already gotten sick of watching everything except for what I was actually interested in, so I decided to watch My Little Pony instead.  (Amusingly enough, they did show what I wanted to see after I was already frustrated over not seeing it and thus not watching).

    BBC and CBC always have the best coverage anyway.

  • Tess

    I loved the Atlanta Games closing ceremony.  I can still remember the unmitigated joy that emanated from that stadium…and I can remember the cameras spending time focused on the subjects of the Olympics as they circled the field and ended up dancing in the center.  So much joy..and it wasn’t really about anything other than celebrating the accomplishments of all those who had participated.

    Now the closing ceremony sardines the athletes into tiny pie shaped wedges where they can barely move and the show is all about the elaborate, the expense, the “We are going to top the show they had last time”.  It is no longer a celebration of the Olympics but an OTT production focusing on costumes and pretty girls and pyrotechnics and a lot of non-relevant entertainers.  I, for one, found the whole thing sadly wanting.  It was so non-emotional for me.

    And as far as NBC…sure they screwed up on a lot and in this day of instant gratification it is hard to find a happy balance between live events and satisfying the audience that isn’t able to watch 24/7.  And considering how much money NBC paid the Olympic coffers I am sure it was important to them to have the largest viewing audience for the most popular events.  Without the economic support provided by NBC I am sure that a lot of what we marvel at, now, as to how the “events” are presented couldn’t even begin to happen.

    And I think the term “butchered” is pretty darn harsh considering that the very vast majority of the audience didn’t sit at a computer all day watching what really went down. Based on what I saw the program was overlong and pretty boring in reality and the TV presentation was quite enough to provide the impression that the organizers wanted….sometimes less is more…I don’t think that the pace of the original could of held up on my TV screen. They were lucky they even kept me semi-interested for the 3 hours.

  • Mateja Praznik

    Olympics opening and closing ceremonies are always about the host country’s history and culture. Athletes and sport are only a small part of that. I’m always bored to tears during the long procession of flags and athletes. I’m all for watching the athletes while they compete, but that’s it.

    I loved the closing ceremony for the most part. So many great artists performed in one night, it’s rare to see a spectacle like that. I admit I didn’t pay much attention to the ceremonies at the previous Olympic games, because Chinese culture is so foreign to me as European. I mean, the spectacle was magnificent, but I wasn’t excited by it. But, I appreciated their effort. It would be totally rude if our national broadcaster cut the ceremony in favor of domestic Olympic program.

    Slovenian national broadcaster broadcasted last night’s ceremony in full, live and with only one commentator. No commercial breaks for almost three hours, can you imagine? It looks like most of the world had similar arrangement. Meanwhile, NBC cut a good part of the ceremony in favor of rehashing old news?!

  • Anonymous

    And I think the term “butchered” is pretty darn harsh considering that the very vast majority of the audience didn’t sit at a computer all day watching what really went down.

    How do you know whether NBC excised some of the best parts or not? FOR INSTANCE–there was a beautiful segment set to “Here Comes the Sun” where the Olympic VOLUNTEERS were  thanked. It was joyful. It was gorgeous. NBC cut it. 

    If you didn’t watch both presentations, you aren’t in a position to judge whether my term “butcher” is harsh or not.

  • Anonymous

    I loved the closing ceremony for the most part. So many great artists performed in one night, it’s rare to see a spectacle like that.

    What a great night for the Brits, to experience such an awesome celebration of their popular culture. As a lover of all things British, I adored both the opening and closing ceremonies.

  • Tess

    I said I watched both….one in tandem with a golf tournament which was far more interesting and one when I kept seeing what the cable networks had to offer.

    I just didn’t like the program…period.  Maybe others felt that the good bits were left on the cutting room floor but I don’t think NBC could have made a silk purse out of the sows ear they were given…at least for me. And I adore Great Britain, its culture, and its history. Having lived in Cambridge for a summer during my college years I came to be an Anglophile in disguise.

    In fact one of the best parts, for me, of NBCs coverage was Saturday night when Tom Brokow gave his report on the Battle of Britain and how the British kept the world from falling into Hitler’s tyranny. That was good TV.

  • Tess

    Over the years…and I’ve watched since ABC carried the broadcasts in black and white and “film” had to be flown back to the States to be processed and delivered.  It’s only been the last few Olympic ceremonies that the closing ceremonies have switched from honoring the participants and having a party for them to be all about national identity.

    Besides, I am proud of my compatriots and wanted them to be a highlight of the last night coverage…others may see it differently.

    And, I think and don’t know, that many countries TV reports from the Olympics were on state supported television where “tax” dollars pay for the broadcast. Not the reality in the US where TV isn’t controlled by the state and the networks need to make money to continue to provide the broadcasts…and I don’t think most advertisers are altruistic enough to give up their commercials when they are ultimately paying for everything. Just a guess, though.

  • http://twitter.com/KariannHart Kariann Hart

    I was thinking how amazing the show would appear for some of the Third World  athletes.  It had the circus/carnival aura going out.  Sure some parts were over-the-top, but they were probably surprised.  I did enjoy what we did see.

    I wish something could be done so NBC never cuts out any part of the Opening or Closing ceremonies.  I can’t get the Canadian stations and feel I got gypped!  

  • judes

    I was at the Closing Ceremony of the Sydney Olympics & all I can say is it was great fun for the Olympians as well as being great entertainment for the audience -whilst being a tongue in cheek celebration of our culture.
     After seeing the London Ceremony-I thought it was a great balance .They did have a couple of tributes to the athletes . Of course they were going to focus on their athletes as they were the host nation & did extremely well . When the Olympics is back in the US you can focus on your athletes. I think if you asked the athletes I am sure they would say they had a great time at this ceremony. I am one who looks for our flag bearer but fast forwards other countries as I mostly don’t know who they are.I will say that for the most part I didn’t fast forward the entertainment as it was familiar to me & was very enjoyable.

  • Hazehel

    If you didn’t watch both presentations, you aren’t in a position to judge whether my term “butcher” is harsh or not.

    I can’t watch NBC coverage, but judging from what was said to be cut in the post on the ceremony, I’d say they make the right decision on some, and bad call on the others.  For example it was inexcusable for George Michael to use the Olympics as a platform to promote his new single (no one in the UK cares about his new single), so that was rightly cut, personally I would have cut his entire performance just for that impertinence. 
     
    They could have cut some of the others and kept those that got cut.  I would have for example kept the second Emeli Sande performance and cut the first one.  I’m a Madness fan, but frankly, Suggs can’t sing any more, that the song should have been more appropriately “Embarrassment” instead of “My House” the way he sang the song, cutting it would be an act of mercy.  Not sure what Russell Brand was doing there singing even if it’s great to hear “I Am the Walrus”.   They didn’t expect it took so long for the athlete to come into stadium so I expect NBC must have shortened that part.  (Some of the athletes were actually stopped from entering because the whole thing overran so much).  
     
    Disappointments – bad sound for some of the performers, Annie Lennox’s segment looked good visually but the sound was atrocious. Whoever is responsible for the sound should be sacked.  

    Surprise omissions – The Rolling Stones, Fleetwood Mac, Led Zeppelin, (a whole host of others were omitted, although less surprisingly, but still disappointing.)

    Surprisingly enjoyable -  Jessie J, Tinie Tempah and Taio Cruz doing  Bee Gees’ “You Should be Dancing”.  
      
    Best part – Eric Idle’s “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life”.  

    Best performer -  Freddy Mercury, a dead singer stole the show.  
     
    Reference that went over the head of most viewers – re-enactment of the Pink Floyd “Wish You Were Here” album cover (the one where the dummy burst into flame).  
      
    Verdict?  Could have been much better, and went on for far too long.  NBC was right to cut it down, they just cut some of the wrong bits.

  • Allison

    I preferred ABC’s coverage.

  • breakdown

    Overall I think NBC’s coverage was good. With their cable stations you were able to watch or dvr close to 20 hours of coverage per day. I’m not a big fan of the opening and closing ceremonies. I usually watch for the music and was surprised that I missed The Who twice, haha.

  • Anonymous

    Interesting fact:  Given population growth, 219.4 million viewers for the London Games is actually a smaller percentage of the population than the 215 million viewers for the Beijing Games.

    I know that I wasn’t able to stand more than 20 minutes of coverage at a time.  All the good stuff got gifified and Buzzfeeded anyway.