It seems not even Al Gore and his stable of celebrity talent could keep Live Earth at the top of the ratings this past weekend. Greg Pollowitz from The Corner has the breakdown from Nielsen Media Research:
Saturday 7/07/07
Note: The following results are based on the fast affiliate ratings (Live Plus Same Day data).
Household Rating/Share
CBS: 3.8/ 8, Fox: 3.0/ 6, ABC: 2.1/ 4, NBC: 1.8/ 4
-Total Viewers:
CBS: 5.21 million, Fox: 4.60, ABC: 3.42, NBC: 2.75
-Adults 18-49:
Fox: 1.5 rating/6 share, ABC and CBS: 1.1/ 4 each, NBC: 0.9/ 3
That's right; NBC had a total of 2.75 million viewers for their three-hour airing of the Live Earth concerts. As a small consolation, they had more viewers than this spot in Brisbane, Australia, where a large outdoor screen had been set up for the anticipated throng.
Perhaps it's just as well for NBC Universal that it donated, among eight of its stations (broadcast and cable) the 75 hours of airtime for the Live Earth extravaganza. Advertisers on NBC last Saturday night certainly wouldn't have been too pleased with the return on their investment.