FOX Caused the Decline in World Series Viewership and Ratings
~some number-crunching by your pal pitchburgh 💕
As we know, the World Series has been slipping in both ratings and viewership over the last couple decades. Wikipedia has detailed data on how each Series fared, dating back to 1984; so I made some graphs, babey*
*best viewed on mobile bc Tumblr is the Worst; click for a better view.
World Series Ratings, 1984-2019
The highest rated series was 28.6 in 1986. At present, the lowest is the current series, averaging a meager 6.78.
World Series Average Viewership (in Millions), 1984-2019
Not as dramatic, but still a downward trend. 1986 takes the crown again with 36.37 million average viewers; 2019 has only attracted an average of 11.59 million viewers per game.
Why the decline?
Well. Data points plotted in black are games broadcast by NBC, ABC, or CBS. Data points plotted in red are series broadcast by FOX (and called by Joe Buck).
The average rating for all non-FOX broadcasts is a respectable 21.2, with viewership averaging at 30.1 million.
The average rating for FOX broadcasts, on the other hand, is a measly 11.0, with viewership averaging 17.7 million.
In conclusion: FOX sucks; science proves it; thank u for coming to my TED talk
