After more than two weeks of coverage, the 2022 Winter Olympics competition in Beijing is complete, leaving behind dismal TV ratings.
NBC announced it had an average of 11.4 million viewers across its platforms each night for a total audience of 160 million — a record low for any Winter Games, with a 42% drop in viewers from the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea.
“For us, it’s been difficult. There’s no way around this,” NBC Sports Chairman Pete Bevacqua said, noting that Beijing had the most stringent COVID-19 policies yet.
“It’s no secret that athletes in masks, venues without spectators, so much of the passion and excitement, those great moments of Olympic athletes hugging their family and friends and spouses and partners, so much of that magic is just out of necessity not present,” Bevacqua added.
Concerns over China’s human rights violations overshadowed much of the Olympic discussion. The U.S. did not send officials to Beijing, but many conservatives called the Biden administration’s stance weak.
A diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Olympics is a joke. China doesn’t care if Biden and Team show up. They want our athletes.
— Nikki Haley (@NikkiHaley) December 6, 2021
Nikki Haley, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, noted that there is little effect made by the lack of government officials’ attendance. Sen. Tom Cotton called for a “total boycott.”
China is committing genocide.
We need a complete and total boycott of the Beijing Olympics.
Not a half measure.
— Tom Cotton (@TomCottonAR) December 6, 2021
WATCH: BILL MAHER TELLS CELEBRITIES TO ‘STOP KOWTOWING TO CHINA’
A high-profile doping scandal also tainted the Olympic draw.
Sha’Carri Richardson: Tests positive for pot (which is not performance enhancing)
•Banned from OlympicsKamila Valieva: Tests positive for Trimetazidine (which increases blood flow to heart)
•Approved for OlympicsI can’t qwhite put my finger on the difference here? pic.twitter.com/kZhJjWIfhI
— Qasim Rashid, Esq. (@QasimRashid) February 14, 2022
The controversial storylines, however, were not enough to draw a significant audience.
“The Olympics brand is really struggling. A lot of people don’t feel that emotional connection anymore,” Kent State media professor Tang Tang said. “Audiences watch the Olympics for the stories. They need that superhero story, that star quality.”
The Beijing Olympics featured a breakout performance by skier Eileen Gu who chose to represent China instead of the U.S., stirring criticism instead of rallying audiences to tune in and watch.
“Certainly one of the great supporting actors in every Olympics is the host city,” NBC Olympics President Gary Zenkel said. “It’s the culture, the people, even the sponsor activations. People from all over the world come together, and that is not (in Beijing), and there’s no way for us to try to translate something like that.”
NBC was also plagued with a 13-hour time difference from New York, causing many viewers to catch Olympic results on social media and news reports prior to watching any of NBC’s record 2,800 hours of coverage.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
“Given the investment, [NBC has] got to be disappointed right now,” said Andrew Billings, director of the sports communications program at the University of Alabama.
