The Democrats are having their virtual convention and few people are watching. Sorry, but I am confused. I thought that there was a hunger in the country to hear everything Anti-Trump. Didn’t Senator Bernie Sanders say on the opening night that once radical views are now mainstream?
Something went wrong because, according to the AP, people are not watching:
Preliminary estimates show that viewership for the first night of the Democrats’ virtual convention was down compared with the opening of Hillary Clinton’s nominating party four years ago.An estimated 18.7 million people watched coverage between 10 and 11 p.m. on ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, Fox News Channel and MSNBC, the Nielsen company said. Four years ago, opening night drew just under 26 million viewers.Nielsen’s preliminary numbers did not include streaming or networks like PBS and CSPAN; a more comprehensive estimate is due later Tuesday.MSNBC and CNN, which aired the Democrats’ two-hour prepared telecast essentially in its entirety, were rewarded with the biggest audiences.MSNBC had 5.1 million viewers and CNN had 4.78 million, roughly twice what the broadcast networks reached.
The numbers are not final but don’t expect a big rush from PBS or CSPAN.
So what went wrong? My impression is that the speeches were boring and so predictable. In other words, did you need to watch Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to know that the lady hates the country?
Then there was that great call for abolishing the police and ICE. That’s a great message for the people in the inner cities devatasted by riots and looting.
This is not your dad’s Democratic Party or so they say. It is more true this year than ever.
P.S. You can listen to my show (Canto Talk) and follow me on Twitter.