NBC's coverage of MLB's All-Star Game on Tuesday night
earned a 10.1/18 fast national Nielsen rating, down 16% from
last year's 12.0/22 national rating on Fox. The rating is
the game's lowest ever. NBC's pregame show from 8:00-8:45pm
ET drew a 7.3/14, down 30% from last year's 10.5/21. An
estimated 34 million people watched at least part of the
game. St. Louis was the highest rated market with a
20.4/32, followed by Atlanta with a 19.8/31 (NBC). The
HOLLYWOOD REPORTER's Michele Greppi writes that the game
"still managed to make NBC first for the night." But NBC's
pregame show ranked second to ABC's "Who Wants to Be a
Millionaire," and also "lagged behind 'Millionaire'" by 28%
among viewers age 18-49. In that demo, the game averaged a
5.1/16, while "Millionaire" averaged a 5.5/18 (HOLLYWOOD
REPORTER, 7/13).
NO LONGER ALL-STARRY-EYED: NBC Sports VP/Communications
Kevin Sullivan, noting the injuries forcing many marquee
players to miss the game, said, "It's bad luck. There's
nothing you can do about it. Those factors were reflected
in the ratings" (AP, 7/13). In Atlanta, Guy Curtright
notes that the rating "is the closest the All-Star Game has
come to drawing a rating less than double digits." NBC's
Sullivan: "It's still a great event, but obviously the
untimely injuries diminished the interest in the game. But
I don't think you can draw a conclusion from this that the
game is in trouble" (ATLANTA CONSTITUTION, 7/13). In DC,
Eric Fisher writes the low All-Star rating "helped throw
into serious doubt baseball's wish to finally reap a major
TV payday like the NFL, NHL, NASCAR and NCAA each have."
Fisher: "Baseball officials had been counting on a major
draw for the game to help justify its desire to see yearly
network TV fees jump dramatically from the current $210
million to more than" $500M. But Pilson Communications
President Neal Pilson said, "One game, this game in the
middle of the season, won't necessarily make or break
anything. But these numbers will certainly be a topic of
discussion (among owners and TV networks). We'll know a lot
more from what the postseason brings. Those games are still
much more important than this one" (WASHINGTON TIMES, 7/13).
ONE OUTSPOKEN VIEW ON COSTAS: In Minneapolis, Patrick
Reusse writes that NBC's Bob Costas was "outwardly arrogant"
during Tuesday's game. Reusse: "Put this man in a ballpark
and he turns into something far different than the smooth,
professional announcer of his reputation. Costas becomes
the wisest person on Earth. He becomes infallible -- the
pope of baseball" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 7/13).
