Posted by chicagomedia.org on October 31, 2008 at 09:45:35:
Bulls ratings are a slam dunk
Some sports pundits insist the Chicago Bulls will be nothing more than a mediocre team this season. But clearly hardcore fans still want to watch their team play, either in person or on television. The Bulls had a strong showing on WGN-TV, which telecast the season opener against the Milwaukee Bucks, now coached by Scott Skiles, who was fired last year by the Bulls and replaced by Vinny Del Negro, who had never coached an NBA team. All of which made an intriguing backdrop for Tuesday's game and reason enough for viewers to tune in in large numbers.
The WGN telecast pulled an average 6.9 rating and 10.8 share, the highest Nielsen numbers for a Bulls game aired on the station since January 2005. Viewership for the game peaked at a 9.1 rating and 15 share.
The rating refers to the percentage of total TV households in the Chicago market with televisions tuned to WGN (one rating point equals about 35,000 households), while share reflects the percentage of televisions in use that were watching the Bulls game. The game was especially popular with men: The telecast was No. 1 in prime time in the Chicago market in every male demo, including 18-to-34, 18-to-49 and 25- to 54-year-olds.
The game telecast was also first in the local market among all adults in the 18-to-34 and 18-to-49 demographics. And best of all -- the Bulls won convincingly.
(Lewis Lazare, Chicago Sun-Times)