'Fiercest competing political reality shows': Why DNC 2024 might see higher ratings
Democrats are gathering in Chicago this week for the culmination event to put the new presidential candidate in front of a national audience: The Democratic National Convention.
The DNC kicks off Monday with events happening around the city all week and speeches from the likes of Joe Biden, former President Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton scheduled for the evenings, though the full lineup has not yet been released.
The convention comes a month after Republicans hosted their convention in Milwaukee, starting days after former President Donald Trump was shot. Many of the four nights of speeches focused on gratitude Trump survived the assassination attempt, as well as bashing Biden's administration.
But that was before Biden dropped out of the race, and all eyes went to the Democratic party to see if they could pull off the switch. Even though political conventions have seen falling TV viewership as they become predictable, extended pep rallies, Kamala Harris and her running mate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz have drummed up a lot of excitement among voters.
Can they keep the eyeballs though the convention? Here is what to know about historical convention TV ratings as the event gets under way.
More: Black women are in charge at this year's DNC. Expect a different kind of convention.
See how ratings have changed over time
For convention audience, Nielsen measures the percentage of television-owning households that tuned in. The data does not capture people streaming the conventions online.
The final day of the conventions usually draw the most viewers. In 2020, in-person events were canceled or scaled back due to the pandemic and proceedings were broadcast virtually.
Here are the day-by-day Nielsen ratings for the recent conventions:
2024 RNC
2024 RNC Day 4 - 14.3
2024 RNC Day 3 - 10.6
2024 RNC Day 2 - 8.9
2024 RNC Day 1 - 10.6
2020 RNC
2020 RNC Day 4 - 14.7
2020 RNC Day 3 - 11.0
2020 RNC Day 2 - 12.2
2020 RNC Day 1 - 10.7
2020 DNC
2020 DNC Day 4 - 15.6
2020 DNC Day 3 - 14.6
2020 DNC Day 2 - 12.6
2020 DNC Day 1 - 12.7
Looking back further, average ratings across all convention days have been on the decline since 2008 when John McCain and Barack Obama accepted their nominations, Nielsen data shows.
Harris could define her narrative at DNC
Experts have previously told USA TODAY that, while viewership has waned, conventions still matter for getting the candidate in front of a national audience, finalizing a platform (which the party has yet to do), and energizing the delegates.
Frank Sesno, a professor and director of strategic initiatives at the GW School of Media and Public Affairs, told USA TODAY in an interview Friday that the dramatic nature of this election means that people will likely be paying attention to this convention.
"I look at these two campaigns right now as the fiercest competing political reality shows I've ever seen," he said. "There's so much drama on both sides, there's so much tension between the two sides and there's a huge suspense as to what's going to happen."
As conventions often try to create or solidify the narrative of their candidates, he said he is keeping an eye on the extent to which Harris embraces Biden's accomplishments or creates her own space as a candidate.
Regardless, he thinks the content creators the Harris campaign has credentialed will further amplify the excitement among Democrats and extend the reach beyond waning cable news viewership.
"All this excitement that the Democrats have," Sesno said, "they're gonna tune in to see how their star does."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: DNC ratings in history: Why more people might be tuning in this year