The number of Americans watching Trump's impeachment hearings on TV pales in comparison to Nixon, and some are worried it could spell trouble for the Democrats

• Roughly 13 million people tuned in on TV to the first public impeachment hearing on Wednesday, drawing fewer viewers than other recent testimonies by figures like former FBI Director James Comey.
• The viewership also appeared to pale in comparison to the blockbuster Senate Watergate hearings in 1973, when tens of millions of Americans watched unedited tapes aired during primetime.
• Beyond the television ratings, a number of journalists and pundits have expressed concern in recent days that the impeachment hearings have been "boring" or lack "pizazz."
• But others pushed back against such criticism, saying that the impeachment hearings shouldn't be measured by their entertainment value - they're meant to investigate the president for alleged wrongdoing and hold him accountable.
• And it's important to note that live TV viewership for Trump's impeachment hearings don't tell the full story - for instance, many people may have viewed the hearings via livestreams rather than on television networks, and the Nielsen data doesn't encompass the viewership for other television networks like PBS and C-Span.
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Some 13 million people across the country tuned in via live TV to the first public impeachment hearing on Wednesday, in which lawmakers questioned two key witnesses over their bombshell allegations against President Donald Trump, according to preliminary Nielsen figures.

Though the major broadcast networks known as "The Big Three" and their cable news counterparts all aired the hearings live, they received significantly fewer views than other major recent congressional hearings.

In comparison, testimony from former FBI Director James Comey in June 2017 received 19.6 million live TV viewers, and Christine Blasey Ford's testimony against then-Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh received 20 million in September 2018.


Even Michael Cohen, Trump's former fixer, swung 16 million live TV viewers when he testified in February 2019.

The hearing did, however, break even with the viewership garnered by the special counsel Robert Mueller when he finally testified before Congress in July on the Russia investigation.

The Watergate hearings drew far more viewers - but there were several key differences in how they were aired

Wednesday's numbers were also a major departure from similarly historic hearings - for instance, tens of millions of Americans watched unedited tapes of the 1973 Senate Watergate hearings that eventually sparked President Richard Nixon's resignation.

It's estimated that more than 80% of Americans tuned in to at least part of the hearings, according to the Associated Press.

But it's worth noting that the Watergate hearings also occurred during primetime, when viewers were home to watch. Trump's impeachment hearings so far have begun at 10 a.m. ET and run through the daytime, when most Americans have been at work.

It's important to note that live TV viewership for Trump's impeachment hearings don't tell the full story - for instance, many people may have viewed the hearings via livestreams rather than on television networks, and the Nielsen data doesn't encompass the viewership for other television networks like PBS and C-Span.

But it's impossible to tell with certainty how many watched online, since viewership was spread out over multiple online platforms that measure viewership in different ways, and there's no standardized rating system for web viewership as there is for television viewership, according to CNN.

Many of the livestreams were hosted on YouTube, but the platform did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment on viewership.

Some are complaining the hearings are too boring

Beyond the television ratings, a number of journalists and pundits have expressed concern in recent days that the impeachment hearings have been "boring" or lack "pizazz."

"[A]t a time when Democrats are simultaneously eager to influence public opinion in favor of ousting the president and quietly apprehensive that their hearings could stall or backfire, the first round felt more like the dress rehearsal for a serious one-act play than the opening night of a hit Broadway musical," NBC News wrote.

Reuters, meanwhile, declared the hearing "consequential, but dull."

Both news outlets suggested that the hearings would make a far greater impression upon Americans if they're perceived as more exciting and less dry.

But others pushed back against such criticism, saying that the impeachment hearings shouldn't be measured by their entertainment value - they're meant to investigate the president for alleged wrongdoing and hold him accountable.

"Yeah, I'm sorry if, you know, we didn't entertain them, but that wasn't the goal for today," Rep. Eric Swalwell, a California Democrat, told reporters Wednesday evening.

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