The first Hillary Clinton vs. Donald Trump presidential debate was watched by 84 million people, breaking a previous TV record set 36 years ago.
In 1980, Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan’s debate drew 80.6 million viewers.
The viewing figures only count those who watched the debate on the 13 TV channels that carried it live, meaning the true figure may be much higher.
Millions are also thought to have watched worldwide through online live streams or in bars and at parties.
The data provider Nielsen said that viewers stayed tuned through the 98-minute debate.
Image source Wikimedia
Donald Trump told supporters on September 27 that he knew the debate would have “one of the largest audiences in the history of television” but he “took a deep breath” and “pretended I was talking to my family”.
“You just block it out,” the Republican said.
In 2015, the NFL’s Super Bowl won the biggest TV audience to date when 114.4 million people watched New England play Seattle.
There are two more presidential debates to come between the candidates – on October 9 and 19 – before the election on November 8.
On October 9, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump will have competition for the attention of the US; NFL teams the Green Bay Packers and the New York Giants will be playing at the same time as the second debate.
Republican candidate Donald Trump has criticized Lester Holt, the moderator in the first presidential debate, for being tougher on him than on Hillary Clinton.
Donald Trump also complained about his microphone crackling and being at a lower level than Hillary Clinton’s.
The two candidates clashed over jobs, temperament and tax in a debate watched by up to 100 million viewers.
Opinion polls give Hillary Clinton a slight edge, with a majority of voters declaring her the winner of the debate.
Although Donald Trump told reporters immediately after the debate that Lester Holt had done a good job, he accused him of a left-leaning performance the next morning.
“He didn’t ask her about the emails, he didn’t ask her about the scandals, he didn’t ask her about the Benghazi deal. He didn’t ask her about a lot of things he should have asked her about. Why? I don’t know,” he said, speaking to Fox and Friends.
Image source Wikimedia
Donald Trump said Lester Holt had been much tougher on him: “You look at it, you watch the last four questions, he hit me on birther [Donald Trump’s past allegation that President Barack Obama was not born in the US], he hit me on a housing deal from many years ago, that I settled on with no recourse and no guilt… that’s a beauty to be asked, a 40-year-old lawsuit.”
The Republican also said his microphone was “terrible” and crackled, and that his volume was lower than Hillary Clinton’s microphone. He blamed it for what some listeners thought were sniffles by Donald Trump during the debate.
Asked to rate Hillary Clinton’s performance, Donald Trump said he would give her a C-plus, but he declined to grade himself.
“I think I really did well when they asked normal questions,” he said, but added he naturally struggled when asked “unanswerable” ones.
On what he might do differently: “I may hit her harder in certain ways. You know, I really eased up because I didn’t want to hurt anybody’s feelings. So I may hit her harder in certain ways.”
Hours before the debate, polls suggested the candidates were locked in a dead heat, adding to the tension between the rivals on stage throughout the debate.
“I have a feeling that by the end of this evening, I’m going to be blamed for everything that’s ever happened,” Hillary Clinton quipped when prompted to respond to one of Donald Trump’s attacks.
“Why not?” Donald Trump interrupted.
“Yeah, why not,” Hillary Clinton answered.
“You know, just join the debate by saying more crazy things.”
Donald Trump was later thrown on the defensive by Lester Holt for not disclosing his tax returns.
He claimed he was under a “routine audit”.
However, Donald Trump promised he would release them if Hillary Clinton released 33,000 emails that were deleted during an investigation into her private email set-up while secretary of state.
A CNN/ORC poll taken after the first presidential debate found that 62% of voters who had watched the head-to-head thought that Hillary Clinton came out on top, with just 27% giving it to Donald Trump.
Photo Getty Images
This is based on interviews with 521 registered voters chosen as part of a random national sample. However, only 26% identified themselves as Republicans while 41% identified themselves as Democrats.
An informal CNBC poll on its website found that 61% of people thought that Donald Trump won while 39% went for Hillary Clinton, but as CNBC itself points out, the poll is not scientific – anyone, including people outside the United States, appears to be able to vote.
A post-debate survey by Public Policy Polling of 1,002 debate-watchers found that 51% of national voters thought Hillary Clinton had won, with 40% choosing Donald Trump and 9% undecided.
Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump have clashed over jobs, terrorism and race in the first presidential debate.
The attacks turned personal as the Republican accused Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton of not having the right temperament to be president.
Meanwhile, Hillary Clinton baited Donald Trump by pointing out that he refuses to release his tax returns.
The first presidential debate in New York could be the most watched debate in TV history, with up to 100 million viewers.
Hours before the CNN program, polls suggested the candidates were locked in a dead heat, adding to the tension between the rivals on stage throughout the debate.
Image source Wikimedia
“I have a feeling that by the end of this evening, I’m going to be blamed for everything that’s ever happened,” Hillary Clinton quipped when prompted to respond to one of Donald Trump’s attacks.
“Why not?” Donald Trump interrupted.
“Yeah, why not,” Hillary Clinton answered.
“You know, just join the debate by saying more crazy things.”
Donald Trump was later thrown on the defensive by moderator Lester Holt for not disclosing his tax returns.
The billionaire claimed he was under a “routine audit” and would release the document once the audit was finished.
However, Donald Trump promised he would release them if Hillary Clinton released 33,000 emails that were deleted during an investigation into her private email set-up while secretary of state.
Hillary Clinton made a brief response to Donald Trump’s attacks about her use of a private email server – which has haunted her on the campaign trail.
She said there were no excuses for the “mistake” and that she takes responsibility for it.
Hillary Clinton was also uncomfortable when defending her changing position on the controversial Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal.
One key exchange was over Donald Trump’s long-held belief that President Barack Obama was born outside the United States, a position he finally reversed two weeks ago.
“He has a long record of engaging in racist behavior,” Hillary Clinton said, adding that it was a “very hurtful” lie that annoyed and bothered the first African American president.
When asked by Lester Holt to explain his change in stance, Donald Trump said he wanted to concentrate on bigger, more important issues.
Hillary Clinton attacked Donald Trump for praising Russian President Vladimir Putin, and suggesting he “find” her emails.
“I was so shocked when Donald publicly invited Putin to hack into Americans. That is just unacceptable… Donald is unfit to be commander-in-chief.”
The September 26 debate was the first of three between the two candidates.
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