Election Night Narrowly Misses a TV Ratings Record

Election Night Narrowly Misses a TV Ratings Record
Israelis follow the US presidential elections on TV at the American Center in Jerusalem on November 9, 2016. THOMAS COEX/AFP/Getty Images
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NEW YORK—An estimated 71.4 million Americans watched returns electing Republican Donald Trump the next president on prime-time television Tuesday, narrowly missing a record set eight years ago on the night Democrat Barack Obama won his first term.

The Nielsen company said Wednesday that 71.5 million watched election night in 2008.

The Trump victory proved a surprise to both viewers and the networks themselves, which clearly anticipated a victory by Democrat Hillary Clinton based upon her consistent lead in pre-election polls. The aftermath is sure to lead to a serious look at the quality of opinion polls and whether journalists relied on them too much for their coverage.

Election night was a fitting conclusion to a campaign that intrigued television viewers for more than a year. Two of the three most-watched presidential debates in history were between Trump and Clinton. Trump’s proven value as a ratings-grabber led to cable networks giving what some critics regarded as an inordinate amount of attention to his appearances as his campaign was first catching on.

A television screen shows rolling coverage of the U.S. election results as guests mingle at a U.S. election night party at the United States Embassy in London, England, on Nov. 9, 2016. (Jack Taylor/Getty Images)
A television screen shows rolling coverage of the U.S. election results as guests mingle at a U.S. election night party at the United States Embassy in London, England, on Nov. 9, 2016. Jack Taylor/Getty Images