Wednesday, June 20, 2007

MLB All-Star Game Ratings 1967-Present


Can MLB/FOX make it two consecutive years of ratings increases?


I doubt it. The phrase "Lowest rated ____ in history" is going to continue its trend. These lines are all down for everything but the Super Bowl and NASCAR.

But this year is special. Controversy...building, mounting, controversy. It will build faster if Barry hits a few more homeruns. At his current pace he won't break the record before July 10, but stranger things have happend. Either way, the Bud vs. Barry controversy is brewing.

Will this controversy be good for MLB ratings? Perhaps. If the downward trend continues though, no doubt it will be blamed (rightly or wrongly) on the impurity of the game and dislike of Bonds. Looking at the overall trendline I would conclude if the ratings go up measurably vs last year, Barry ought to get some credit for that (even if they just tuned in to hate him). If the ratings go down, I'd attribute it to the trend. Bill Plaschke (who I do enjoy, but who like anyone else can be a dope sometimes) will blame it on Barry.

I'll probably repost this chart again in a few weeks, but you people in the know enjoy getting in on things before the hoi polloi.

P.S. TV by the Numbers is coming Fall '07.

1 comment:

TV by the Numbers said...

Robert, note that for 2006 the rating includes "Live +Same Day Viewing Estimates Include DVR Playback On The Same Day, Defined As 3AM-3AM"

Not clear if any conclusion can be made with that caveat included.

Plus, there have been plenty of single year blips up before, I would suppose that last year's uptick is likely meaningless.