Article claims poll shows nat'l anthem protest is reason for rating drops

[neuronet]

Poll: National Anthem Protests Leading Cause For NFL Ratings Drop

Pollsters asks respondents if they thought X was a reason for NFL rating drop, and 56% of people said 'Yes' in response to national anthem protests. This was higher than any other factor polled.

This does not actually show that the rating drops are due to the protests, it does show that a lot of people will say they think it is. There are so many steps from point A to point B left out of that chain of reasoning that it verges on irresponsible to use the headline they did ('National Anthem Protests Leading Cause For NFL Ratings Drop')

Over 45% also said 'Yes' to domestic violence issues. Unfortunately, Deflategate ********, or the more general incompetence and untrusworthiness of NFL "leadership", was not brought up, afaik. The officiating was not brought up (i.e., length of games), afaik.

 

[deroc5050]

I could do without the national anthem for every game. I heard the anthem a million times during the olympics.. I heard a million times in the baseball playoffs. Keep the National Anthem special, only have someone perform it on maybe opening day and the playoff games.

There is a lot of **** wrong with America if people want to acknowledge the fact that they have some issues with the way the country is headed or issues with what has transpired already.. I have no problem with people protesting. Its a right you have as an American citizen.

 

[SlowGettingUp]

Poll: National Anthem Protests Leading Cause For NFL Ratings Drop

Pollsters asks respondents if they thought X was a reason for NFL rating drop, and 56% of people said 'Yes' in response to national anthem protests. This was higher than any other factor polled.

This does not actually show that the rating drops are due to the protests, it does show that a lot of people will say they think it is. There are so many steps from point A to point B left out of that chain of reasoning that it verges on irresponsible to use the headline they did ('National Anthem Protests Leading Cause For NFL Ratings Drop')

Over 45% also said 'Yes' to domestic violence issues. Unfortunately, Deflategate ********, or the more general incompetence and untrusworthiness of NFL "leadership", was not brought up, afaik. The officiating was not brought up (i.e., length of games), afaik.

Exactly - this is an idiotic poll. How come they didn't ask the people who responded why they themselves were watching less? And the anthem protests are hardly likely to make the same number of viewers watch the games for less time (as the NFL itself claimed was the case). That points to bad game quality or too many games or simply lack of engagement.

It's also worth noting that there is a matching decline in the English Premier League:

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/27/s...in-nfl-and-epl-a-blip-or-something-worse.html

 

[oldrover]

It's also worth noting that there is a matching decline in the English Premier League:

I know my English Premier League watching is waaaay down.

 

[Joey007]

I'm sure there's some that tune out due to this, but I think it's a bunch of things.

I think it's a trifecta of that, the crazy, bizarre election year that we are in, and the fact that prime time games have been pretty ugly this year.

Sprinkle in the Patriots fans who went through with cutting off the NFL, and you have your drop in ratings. These greedy bastards might actually care for once since it involves their pocketbooks...

 

[deroc5050]

Turning one of the biggest NFL super stars EVER.. into a possible/perceptual cheater for basically no reason.. probably didn't help the leagues ratings.

I would say a lot of people are turning away from cable/satellite providers and using alternative methods is a concern now and moving forward.

 

[anditsgood]

You mean its not the exciting lineup of games like the Jags Vs Titans, playing in the prime time of Thursday night , with the color rush?

Im sure the protest has something to do with it, but my reasons for watching 60 % less games is matchups suck, the game has become boring with the yellow flags, the political agenda of the game, the announcers are really less informed then the pink hats, to begin with

Im sorry, if your team sucks , you dont deserve a prime time game

 

[patfanken]

See the problem with so called Polls, is that you have to watch out how much bias they put into the poll. That is easily done by framing the question a certain way OR by selectively choosing a particular demographic to ask your poll questions to. The reality is, that if you don't know the exact wording of the question and exactly who took the poll, it would be easy as pie to deliver whatever response the funder of the poll is looking for, either for or against. And analogy would be funding a medical study on the effects of cigarette smoke, and they found there was no cause, but you didn't know the study was funded by the Tobacco Institute

That being said, there ARE reputable polling companies that do their best to be unbiased in both these areas, but all too often the media gives all kinds of polling information WITHOUT informing its audience who did the polling, what the exact question was, and who they were polling.

DISCLAIMER - I should mention, I find all the polling data flowing from the media to be not only annoying but dangerous. Polls can be manipulated, and in fact people can be manipulated by what they THINK the polls are saying. Our job as voters is to absorb as much information about what the candidates propose to try and do and then pick the one we think will do the best job. It's not some polls' job to tell us. It is OUR job.

 

[doesntmatter1]

If the protests are the reason for the decline then it is totally self inflicted by the media. Most of the anthems aren't even televised and then the media goes out of its way to show me guys kneeling/raised fists etc when I would have been unaware. I honestly don't even think Kap was protesting at first. I think he was being lazy and didn't feel like participating to the anthem he has heard a million times during a meaningless preseason game and has now committed to this path after being questioned about it.

Personally, the players freedom of speech doesn't bother me. It's not as if they are actually boycotting the game, thankfully. Now that would take balls, but that is most likely more money than any of them are willing to lose.

 

[mosslost]

I could do without the national anthem for every game. I heard the anthem a million times during the olympics.. I heard a million times in the baseball playoffs. Keep the National Anthem special, only have someone perform it on maybe opening day and the playoff games.

There is a lot of **** wrong with America if people want to acknowledge the fact that they have some issues with the way the country is headed or issues with what has transpired already.. I have no problem with people protesting. Its a right you have as an American citizen.

You can have a problem with someone's right.. Like I have a problem with an American's right to march as Nazi's even though they have that right. I have a problem with the "Westboro Baptist Church" which celebrates soldiers deaths at their funerals in front of their loved ones, because "God Hates $#@s"

These ****ing idiot morons who sit during the anthem are , yes, exercising their rights. But you should have a problem with these mentally challenged **** tards who do it.

 

[borg]

If the protests are the reason for the decline then it is totally self inflicted by the media. Most of the anthems aren't even televised and then the media goes out of its way to show me guys kneeling/raised fists etc when I would have been unaware. I honestly don't even think Kap was protesting at first. I think he was being lazy and didn't feel like participating to the anthem he has heard a million times during a meaningless preseason game and has now committed to this path after being questioned about it.

Personally, the players freedom of speech doesn't bother me. It's not as if they are actually boycotting the game, thankfully. Now that would take balls, but that is most likely more money than any of them are willing to lose.

Good point. ESPN has unleashed their perpetually affronted mediots to oversaturate the subject as only ESPN can....so fans looking for some escapism in the form of sports entertainment have fewer places to escape to without social justice warriors delivering their schtick.
ESPN...sucking the life out of sports, one league at a time

 

[Tuck]

This is the dumbest thing I've heard today. I really hope the league see this and reacts to it by fining players who protest during the anthem. It will just be another clumsy mistep that blows up in their faces.

 

[SalemPats]

(1) First of all the biggest blame is Roger Goodell who is killing the NFL brand with one bad decision after the next. If they fire him, the image of the NFL will instantly improve. I personally would like to see Goodell run head first into a truck and then get fired.

(2) The media coverage is getting worse and worse and becoming a joke. ESPN is losing all credibility, the media coverage is awful

(3) The running QB is dead and teams have bad QB play

(4) The rule changes to try and create offense changed defenses from tough to speed. We like tough defenses

 

[Observer]

NFL is basically an elaborate reality show these days and there are plenty of alternatives to that, including actually GOOD tv shows.

 

[DarrylS]

IMO the kneeling during the anthem is overplayed by the media in general, this should have been a page 3 story that has run into a long running page 1 story, unfortunately. Then it has turned into a political football... A guy does something that should be obscure effects the viewership of the NFL??

I think the major distraction from football has to do with the current state of politics and the freak show we are calling a Presidential Election.. I find the media coverage of that overwhelming and all consuming.

 

[PScottman]

It's everyone's favorite SAT answer:


e. All of the Above.

 

[PatriotsReign]

Of course it's the reason. It's the only thing different about this year and too many have served this nation's armed forces to let that ******** slide

 

[primetime]

This would have to be a nationally representative poll of television viewers and ask them why they were watching less football in order to be at all valid.

 

[1960Pats]

I know my English Premier League watching is waaaay down.

Mine is exactly the same every year.

 

[ChessToCheckers]

DISCLAIMER - I should mention, I find all the polling data flowing from the media to be not only annoying but dangerous. Polls can be manipulated, and in fact people can be manipulated by what they THINK the polls are saying.

This.

Also, IMO: Attempting to show cause and effect with a single poll is just nonsensical. A comprehensive process of continuously collecting polling data from multiple (10 - 20) sources, weighing their accuracy over many iterations, factoring in recency, and running them through statistical models MAY give you a more accurate picture of what is happening. (For an excellent example, check out Nate Silver's fivethirtyeight.com for The Election, for Sports, and other interesting topics.) Otherwise, it's just lazy BS.