The first presidential debate between Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump drew 84 million U.S. television viewers, a record for such an event and numbers rarely seen on TV in the age of digital streaming and social media.
The audience for the Monday night face-off beat the 1980 record of 80.6 million set by the Jimmy Carter-Ronald Reagan presidential debate, when viewers had far fewer entertainment options. But it fell short of the 100 million viewers some analysts had predicted.
The estimated ratings figure from Nielsen included people who watched the raucous encounter across 13 U.S. cable and broadcast networks and public television station PBS. The TV figures did not include millions of people who watched the debate online through Twitter, Facebook and other social media.
