Women’s sports received more coverage than men’s sports by more than a 6 to 1 margin during NBC’s primetime Paris Summer Olympic broadcast on Thursday, August 1, 2024.
Two men’s events had at least one minute of broadcast coverage.
Men’s swimming had nearly 13 and a half minutes of airtime with the 50 freestyle semifinals, featuring American Caeleb Dressel, and the 200 individual medley semifinal, featuring France’s Leon Marchand.
Men’s rowing had just over a minute of airtime dedicated to Team USA winning gold in the coxless 4 for the first time since the 1960 Rome Summer Games.
Two women’s events came in with at least one minute of airtime.
Women’s gymnastics had nearly 1 hour and 18 minutes of coverage for the all-around, where Americans Simone Biles, gold medalist from 2016, and Suni Lee, gold medalist from 2021, won the gold and bronze medals, respectively.
Women’s swimming had just over 31 minutes for the 4×200 freestyle relay as Team USA won silver and Katie Ledecky collected her 13th Olympic medal. Ledecky become the most decorated American female Olympian in history and is now tied for 5th place on the all-time Olympic medals list. Should she win a medal in the 800 freestyle, she will be in sole possession of 5th place. NBC also featured the 200 butterfly, where Team USA’s Regan Smith won silver, and the 200 breaststroke, where American Kate Douglass won gold.
No mixed sex events were covered.
Snoop Dogg visits the Louvre did not count towards the men’s, women’s or mixed sport totals.
Overall, coverage of men’s events accounted for 12.72% of NBC’s primetime Olympic broadcast. Women’s events received 87.28% of NBC’s coverage. Mixed sex events (e.g., equestrian) received 0.00% of NBC’s coverage.
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After 7 nights, when mixed sex events are excluded, men’s events have received 42.43% of NBC’s primetime broadcast coverage compared to 57.57% for women’s events.
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Regular updates about NBC’s coverage of men’s and women’s sports on its primetime broadcast will be posted throughout the 2024 Paris Summer Games on FiveRingTV.com. Additional updates will also be posted on the @FiveRingTV X feed. A mid-Olympic report, with complete sport-by-sport coverage breakdowns, will also be issued.
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Method: The percentage of primetime devoted to men’s, women’s and mixed sex sports is calculated by a single researcher, utilizing a stopwatch and DVR or DVD time codes, measuring (to the millisecond) the total amount of time devoted to each event. Any time spent at the actual athletic site, on a profile about an athlete, promos about a specific athlete or sport, and host commentary about a specific sport or athlete is recorded. Split screens combining commercials and live coverage are included in the calculations, but commercial breaks are not included. The NBC broadcast network East Coast feed is used for the calculations. Olympic coverage on cable networks and live streaming are not included. Network overruns beyond 11:00pm up to the break for local news are included within the calculations.
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Olympic Television: Broadcasting the Biggest Show on Earth contains a detailed 20-year examination of how male and female athletes have been covered within primetime Olympic broadcasts. The book also has analyses of how race/ethnicity and nationality impact Olympic coverage, interviews with NBC personnel about the content and production of Olympic broadcasts, and a detailed overview of Olympic television history. Published by Routledge, it is available in hardcover, paperback and ebook formats at Amazon.com, the Routledge website, and other outlets.
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