NBC finished with a 12.1 fast-national rating and 21.3 million viewers for Sochi Games coverage on Sunday night, continuing a trend of beating out the comparable night from the ’06 Turin Games, but coming in well behind live coverage from the ’10 Vancouver Games. Sunday marked the ninth time in 10 nights that NBC’s audience topped the figures seen eight years ago. Coverage on Sunday night was highlighted by the ice dancing short dance, which saw Americans Meryl Davis and Charlie White take the lead going into yesterday's long competition. The net also showcased men’s super-G, women’s snowboard cross, women’s speedskating and two-man bobsledding. After 10 nights, NBC is averaging a 13.1 rating, down 10% from Vancouver, but up 8% from Turin (Austin Karp, Assistant Managing Editor).
| WINTER OLYMPICS AVERAGE PRIMETIME RATINGS TREND |
| | '14 (Sochi) | '10 (Vancouver) | '06 (Turin) | '02 (Salt Lake) |
| 10th Day (Sunday) | 12.1 | 13.2 | 11.6 | 17.1 |
| 9th Day (Saturday) | 9.6 | 14.7 | 11.3 | 14.0 |
| 8th Day (Friday) | 11.0 | 13.4 | 11.2 | 15.8 |
| 7th Day (Thursday) | 13.4 | 14.5 | 11.9 | 17.6 |
| 6th Day (Wednesday) | 12.1 | 16.7 | 11.3 | 17.5 |
| 5th Day (Tuesday) | 13.7 | 12.2 | 11.3 | 18.5 |
| 4th Day (Monday) | 12.8 | 14.2 | 12.8 | 19.6 |
| 3rd Day (Sunday) | 14.4 | 14.3 | 13.3 | 17.6 |
| 2nd Day (Saturday) | 13.9 | 14.0 | 13.5 | 17.1 |
| Opening Ceremony | 17.0 | 17.3 | 12.8 | 25.5 |
| 10-NIGHT AVG. | 13.1 | 14.5 | 12.1 | 18.3 |
| | | | | |
THE HOST WITH THE MOST: Bob Costas last night returned to NBC’s primetime Olympic broadcast after an eye infection put him on the sideline the previous six nights. Costas opened the broadcast by saying, "I'm Bob Costas sitting in tonight for Matt Lauer and Meredith Vieira." Costas added, "My sincere thanks to Matt Lauer and Meredith Vieira, two friends and true pros who stepped in for me on short notice. My thanks as well to all of you who expressed your concern, and my apologies to everyone for the unavoidable but uncomfortable circumstance of a broadcaster's ill-timed affliction getting in the way, even for just a few moments, of what we all came here for -- the Olympic Games" (
"XXII Winter Olympics," NBC, 2/17). Costas prior to the broadcast on a conference call said, "The worst three days of it I was primarily in a darkened room. There were other times when just to kind of break the monotony I would go downstairs for a little while to the restaurant of the hotel or at night walk out on the terrace attached to the room just to get a little fresh air" (
L.A. TIMES, 2/18). Costas noted that there was a point at which he "thought there was a slight chance he would miss the rest of the Games." He said, "There was probably a point three or four days ago where I thought there was maybe a 10 percent chance that might happen because there was one day where it kind of stalled and even seemed to go backwards for a little while" (
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 2/18). He said of the buzz his condition created, "I think it would have been water cooler talk no matter who the host of the Olympics was at any time because it’s such a front and center position. If the same thing had happened to Jim McKay in 1984, people would have talked about it; it’s just that the Internet didn’t exist then and there weren’t as many cable television outlets” (
NYTIMES.com, 2/17).
BELL DEFENDS MILLER COVERAGE: NBC Olympics Exec Producer Jim Bell defended the coverage of U.S. skier Bode Miller and the death of his brother last year as "part of the network’s storytelling obligation during the Games." Bell said, "We have to make a lot of decisions every day on our coverage, and we made that one and we’re fine with it." Bell said that he "understood some of the criticism" of reporter Christin Cooper, which he attributed to "shoot-from-the-hip reactions" by columnists and Twitter users. In N.Y., Richard Sandomir writes Miller's spirit following the interview has been "generous," but a reporter asking questions should "not be in the heat of the moment; she should be the calm, disinterested observer who asks the right questions of happy, stunned and disconsolate athletes" (N.Y. TIMES, 2/18). In DC, Paul Farhi notes ABC "perfected the Olympic storytelling style more than four decades ago by producing 'up-close-and-personal' features about the Games’ competitors." But that style on Sunday "may have gone too far" (WASHINGTON POST, 2/18). Dallas Morning News columnist Tim Cowlishaw said there is a "point where you can see after two questions there's no need to go any further." Miller "said what he has to say" and Cooper is "just trying to make sure he breaks down and cries." Cowlishaw: "She got what she wanted" ("Around The Horn," ESPN, 2/18). In N.Y., Nathaniel Vinton wrote Cooper "doesn't deserve the pile-on." She may have been "a little too persistent Sunday probing Miller’s grief," and maybe NBC "focuses too much on touchy-feely backstories and not enough on the inherent, unique drama of every competition." Vinton: "There’s a lot more to what happened on Sunday than ratings -- though ratings clearly influenced someone’s editorial decisions" (NYDAILYNEWS.com, 2/17).
MILLR REITERATES HIS STANCE: Miller this morning again defended Cooper's questioning. Appearing from Sochi via satellite on ABC's "GMA," Miller said, "I really don’t think it was Christin Cooper’s fault and I don’t blame NBC. I think it was just a heavy moment for me, and I’ve had a long career and it’s a lot of work to get to where I am. And to come back with all of this uncertainty and then have things fall into place, and just the slightest mention of the loss of my brother was enough to really just open the floodgates.” After the interview aired, ABC's Robin Roberts said to her co-hosts, “He has been very kind and very generous to Christin Cooper, the reporter. He’s known her for a long time and he’s said to people, ‘Please, it wasn’t her fault,' and he really has defended her a great deal” (“GMA,” ABC, 2/18). ESPN's Bomani Jones asked, "What else was she supposed to ask him about at that point? ... That was really awkward and I can understand why people would be critical. I'm just not sure what other direction that could have possibly taken" ("Highly Questionable," ESPN2, 2/17).
IS NBC GETTING TOO PERSONAL? In L.A., Steven Zeitchik wrote there is "an eyebrow-raising trend in Olympics coverage to emphasize personal tragedy over in-competition strategy and achievement." In addition to Cooper's interview with Miller, Vieira on Friday "discussed a miscarriage with skeleton silver medalist Noelle Pikus-Pace, while trackside reporter Lewis Johnson elicited tears from Pikus-Pace teammate Katie Uhlaender by asking her about her dead father." The Salt Lake Tribune's Nate Carlisle has "been running a spreadsheet calculating the number of stories featuring competitors' dead relatives," and through Saturday there "had been 25 such stories, an average of nearly three per day" (LATIMES.com, 2/17). ESPN's Keith Olbermann noted there were several "editorial conversations" about the Miller-Cooper interview before it aired Sunday and said, "My informed speculation would be that most of those conversations consisted of high-fives and the phrase, 'Exactly what we wanted.'" Olbermann: "The Bode Miller interview wasn't bad judgment, it was mission accomplished" ("Olbermann," ESPN2, 2/17). ESPN's Michael Smith said, "NBC got what it wanted. They kept the camera on Bode the whole time." ESPN's Israel Gutierrez said Miller crying on-camera "makes for better TV" ("Around The Horn," ESPN, 2/17). In Denver, Mark Kiszla writes, "There's no telling which big, tough, macho American male is going to be the next Olympic athlete reduced to tears by an NBC reporter" (DENVER POST, 2/18).
BOOTH REVIEWS: The L.A. TIMES' Zeitchik noted NBC has had "highs and lows in the broadcast booth" during the Games. Speedskating has "has been a standout -- particularly on the color-commentating side with veteran Dan Jansen and new commentator Apolo Ohno in long and short track, respectively." Ohno has been a "pleasant surprise," and while he can be a "little too eager to declaim big moments, he also offers game-within-a-game nuance stemming from his experience." However, NBC has seen "insight-challenged breathlessness from such commentators as luge play-by-play man Leigh Diffey, an import from motor sports coverage, and an abundance of melodrama from its figure-skating troika of Tom Hammond, Scott Hamilton and Sandra Bezic" (LATIMES.com, 2/17).
JOHNNY ON THE SPOT: USA TODAY's Nancy Armour profiles NBCSN figure skating analyst Johnny Weir and writes while he is "only a few months into his new gig," it is "clear it fits him as perfectly." Weir said, "I love sitting there and being able to be free and being able to give my opinion. There are a lot of conglomerates that wouldn't let me do that." When Weir formally retired from competition last fall, NBC "moved quickly to hire him." NBC's Bell said, "He knows the sport and the competitors thoroughly, and is unafraid to offer an opinion." Armour writes Weir is able to give viewers "enough technical expertise so they understand what they're seeing, but not so much that he becomes a distraction." He "doesn't feel pressured to fill every second with commentary, letting the skater's performance speak for itself until he has something worthwhile to add." In his pairing with the net's Tara Lipinski, the "chemistry and camaraderie between the two is readily apparent, making viewers feel as if they're watching skating with two of their best friends" (USA TODAY, 2/18).
CENTER ICE AT CENTER STAGE: In New Jersey, Andrew Gross writes while NHL execs are "holding their breath, NBC officials are thrilled right now" with Olympic hockey. The tournament "draws eyeballs to the sport in a way the NHL often fails to do, save for the Winter Classic and assorted other outdoor games and the Stanley Cup Finals." It also helps that Team USA "has, if anything, exceeded expectations" and "appears headed for a Friday semifinal game against Canada." It would be the U.S.' "first rematch since Canada ... defeated Team USA, 3-2, for the gold" at the '10 Vancouver Games (Bergen RECORD, 2/18).
