The Tokyo Olympics, held a year late because of COVID-19, came to an end Sunday.
As far as the competition? It was sensational entertainment for fans. As always, the Olympics were full of magic moments — the USA men’s and women’s basketball teams won gold; host Japan won a gold medal in baseball; American swimmer Katie Ledecky won two gold medals and two silver medals to up her Olympic medal count to 10; a 13-year-old (Japanese skateboarder Momiji Nishiya) won a gold medal; and American Allyson Felix became the most decorated track-and-field athlete in U.S. Olympic history. And those are just a few of the highlights. (New York Times sports editor Randal C. Archibold has “Seven Olympic Moments Worth Revisiting.”)
There also were important stories, such as American gymnast Simone Biles bringing more attention to the mental wellness of athletes by withdrawing from several events.
But off the field, the Olympic TV ratings were definitely not gold. When all the numbers are in, it’s expected that the average nightly viewership will be more than 10 million viewers fewer than the 29 million per night who watched the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in 2016.
Several factors may have influenced the numbers, including a half-day’s time difference between Tokyo and the United States. There’s also just a general somber vibe because of COVID-19 and the lack of fans.
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Veteran sportscaster Bob Costas, who was the prime-time host of 12 Olympic Games, told The New York Times’ Tiffany Hsu, “You can only play the hand you’ve been dealt, and they’ve been dealt a difficult hand. You can’t create something out of thin air. Everybody knows that this is, we hope, a one-of-a-kind Olympics. It’s like if somebody is running the 100 meters and they have a weight around their ankles. That is not a fair judge of their speed.”
But it’s not all grim news for NBCUniversal. Streaming numbers are up, and NBC is likely to see growth in subscriptions for Peacock, the network’s streaming service. And during a conference call last week, Jeff Shell, the chief executive of NBCUniversal, said he expects the Tokyo Games to be profitable. Let’s not forget, even though numbers are down compared to other Olympics, the TV ratings for the games still crush whatever else is on.
Reviews of NBC’s coverage have been mixed. There have been complaints of the Olympics being on too many channels. Although, should we really consider giving the viewer too many options to be a bad thing? Still, many insist NBC could have been clearer on the starting times of certain events and where they could be found on their TVs or online.
But the time difference can be discombobulating for viewers, and I’ve read from those who thought NBC could have done a better job introducing viewers to the athletes either before they competed or after they did something special. In other words, more in-depth features beyond interviews. I’m not sure I agree with that pushback, but there were enough complaints that they can’t be dismissed.
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In a good piece, The Los Angeles Times’ Greg Braxton, Tracy Brown, Thuc Nhi Nguyen and Eric Sondheimer with “These Olympics have often made for frustrating TV. Here’s how to fix it.”
Also, to wrap up the Olympics, here are a few more good suggestions:
- The Washington Post’s Simon Denyer and Michelle Ye Hee Lee with “Olympic magic cut through the pandemic gloom, but the Tokyo Games’ legacy is complex.”
- The New York Times’ Motoko Rich with “Olympics End as They Began: Strangely.”
- A really cool photo gallery from The New York Times: “The Biggest Highlights From the Oddest Olympics.”
- ESPN.com’s Sam Borden with “Olympics 2021: Tokyo Games again show what the Olympics are all about.”
- The Star Tribune’s Jim Souhan with “Amid pandemic, profoundly human stories lift the Tokyo Olympics.”
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This piece originally appeared in The Poynter Report, our daily newsletter for everyone who cares about the media. Subscribe to The Poynter Report here.
