Beijing Blows 'Em All Away

With one day to spare, the Beijing Olympics have become the most-watched event in American television history.
NBC Universal reports its total audience for these Games hit 211 million through Saturday, pushing it past Atlanta 1996 as the all-time leader for Olympic viewership south of the border. The aggregate number 12 years ago was 209 million for 17 days. Beijing's total has yet to include today's programming, which included the men's basketball final and the closing ceremony.
Perhaps even more impressive: 86% of U.S. households tuned in to at least some part of Beijing 2008.
Audiences got a huge boost in the opening week of the Games, when American swimmer Michael Phelps made his historic charge to an unprecedented eight gold medals in a single Olympics. NBC Universal also spread its coverage over nine networks, with its cable outlets combining for a record 86 million viewers.
While Winter Olympics ratings tend to be stronger in Canada, the opposite is true for a neighbouring country that is traditionally a Summer Games powerhouse. Four of the five most-watched Olympics ever in the U.S. were summer affairs, with Lillehammer 1994 (carried by CBS) the lone exception. We don't need to get into why.