Most-Watched Broadcast Democratic Debate of 2016 Campaign with 10.2 Million Viewers on NBC

Attracts Additional 1.2 Million Viewers Across Digital Platforms and Over Half a Million on MSNBC

JANUARY 18, 2016 — Sunday night’s NBC News-YouTube Democratic Candidates Debate was seen by 12.5 million viewers across all platforms, including 10.2 million live on the NBC network – making it the most-watched broadcast network Democratic debate of the 2016 campaign so far and the third-highest rated Democratic debate in history. NBC drew significantly more young viewers than the two previous broadcast debates, with nearly a third of the total audience in the A25-54 demo (3.17 million or 31% vs. 25% for both ABC and CBS). The event topped all 2012 primary debates in both total viewers and the A25-54 demo.
The forum, moderated by “NBC Nightly News” anchor Lester Holt with NBC News chief foreign affairs correspondent Andrea Mitchell, aired live across the country from 9:00-11:00 p.m. ET.
Nearly 1.2 million viewers streamed the event live on NBC News digital platforms including the NBC News YouTube channel, NBCNews.com, and apps for iPhone, Android, Amazon, Apple TV, FireTV, and Roku.
The two-hour program drew an additional 552,000 total viewers and 173,000 A25-54 viewers as it re-aired on MSNBC from 11:00 p.m. – 1:00 a.m. ET.
The DNC-sanctioned event, hosted by the Congressional Black Caucus Institute, took place at the Gaillard Center in Charleston, South Carolina.
Photos, video clips, and rush transcripts are available on the NBC News PR site: http://press.nbcnews.com.