Americans may be fascinated by China, a country they've seen little of, and NBC is certainly doing a solid job broadcasting the Olympics and streaming every imaginable event, but the reason ratings are so strong has mostly to do with one person, Michael Phelps.
That's the thinking of media planners and buyers as the Games in Beijing easily top those four years ago in Athens, with Saturday's tune-in peaking at nearly 40 million viewers in the U.S. alone.
In a poll last Thursday, readers were asked what they thought was the big story of these games.
Nearly two thirds, 61 percent, chose Phelps, agreeing with the statement: "He's amazing, I tune in just for him every night."
Asked why the ratings were so strong, and given the option of choosing more than one answer, 64 percent chose "Anticipation over the performance of America's star athletes like Michael Phelps."
Next, at 44 percent, was: "The need to escape from life's other woes like high gas prices, rising food costs, and the mortgage mess that won't go away."
Coming in third, at 28 percent, was America's fascination with China, and fourth, at 27 percent, was "The facing off of two world and athletic powers, China and the U.S., on China's home field."
Fifth, with just 11 percent, was "The successful addition of digital media options that have helped drive viewers to television."
Asked, who was the face of these games, 82 percent chose Phelps. No one else came even close. Gymnast Shawn Johnson came in at just 3 percent.
A majority of readers, 57 percent, think NBC's ratings will continue to show such big gains over Athens, even after Phelps goes home, agreeing with this statement: "The strong performances by the U.S. teams, combined with high anticipation for track and field next week, will keep them well above 2004."
The next largest share, 28 percent, were not sure, while 15 percent though ratings would fall off with Phelps no longer competing.
A majority of readers think NBC has done a good to excellent job with the Games, with 31 percent rating it as excellent and 38 percent as good.
Half of the respondents, 50 percent, think China so far has made a good impression on the rest of the world, agreeing with this statement: "Yes, with a few exceptions. Though the political upheaval has been kept to a minimum, it remains in the background."
But nearly a third, 28 percent, were less impressed, agreeing with this statement: "No, but not a horrible one, either. The country still remains shrouded in mystery."
By a decent margin, 60 percent to 40 percent, readers think the Games will give the network a boost for its fall shows from the promotions it's aired for its shows. The larger share agreed with this statement: "Yes, at least initially. The spots are raising awareness of the shows, though it's their quality that will ultimately determine how well they perform (remember 'Bionic Woman?')."
The remainder agreed with this statement: "No, there haven't been enough of them. I've noticed more spots for returning shows like 'ER,' and I don't think viewers will remember the new shows until they premiere in September."
