Viewers More Engaged in Republican Convention

Undecided voters were more engaged and attentive during the Republican National Convention (RNC) than during the Democratic National Convention (DNC), according to a media research firm.

Uncommitted voters were most engaged in Sen. John McCain’s (R-Ariz.) Sept. 4 acceptance speech. The addresses by Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and Gov. Sarah Palin (R-Alaska) were the second most engaging programs to uncommitted voters. Nielsen also found that likely voters were 12 percent more attentive to the RNC than to the DNC.

McCain’s speech drew a hefty 38.9 million viewers, 500,000 more than the 38.4 million viewers who watched Obama’s Invesco Field acceptance speech the week before.

The research was conducted by Nielsen AIG, a firm which studies ads, product placement, and program sponsorship during television programs.

–Michael O’Brien