NBC is giving advertisers who bought airtime during the Tokyo Olympics extra commercials due to underwhelming ratings for this year’s 2020 Olympic Games, fueled by a pandemic-weary population and backlash against woke athletes protesting the U.S. flag and national anthem. NBC’s primetime coverage of the Tokyo Olympics on July 26 averaged 14.7 million viewers -- for a 49% drop compared to the equivalent night from the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games and 53% less than the 2012 London Olympics. "It's probably NBC's worst-case scenario, but it's probably a worst-case scenario that they would have been able to predict months ago." NBC HAS 33-YEAR LOW VIEWERSHIP FOR TOKYO OLYMPICS OPENING CEREMONY: ‘NOT A HAPPY’ BENCHMARKViewership has lagged behind the Rio coverage by roughly half on numerous nights of this year’s competition. But images of other athletes protesting the flag and the anthem haven’t helped bring back alienated viewers.

Source: Fox News August 08, 2021 00:56 UTC