John was funny, but the ratings sucked
Despite some very good films, the end of the writers strike, an 80th anniversary, and a host bent on telling good political jokes in the middle of an election year, the ratings for the Academy Awards saw a 30 year low.
Citing Nielsen's "fast national" figures, which are preliminary, ABC said the Oscars broadcast trumped other recent awards ceremonies, including the Emmys, the Golden Globes and the Grammy Awards. Even so, the viewership figure fell far short of the 40.2 million viewers who tuned in last year to see Martin Scorsese's "The Departed" win for Best Picture. And the total viewer turnout for the glitzy event was the lowest since 1974.
The program was being watched as a potential barometer of the health of broadcast TV, as it was the first big event to air on a traditional broadcast network since the resolution of the months-long writers strike.
A barometer, eh? I'd say the forecast looks pretty bad.
More here from AdAge:
Oscars Viewership Lowest in 30 Years
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Tuesday, February 26, 2008
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