It’s been interesting to read the various analyses about why the opening ceremony of the 2016 Olympics in Brazil experienced such a horrendous decline in viewership from previous Olympics. Neilson reported that viewership was down a whopping 35% from London’s opening ceremony in 2012. Although Deadline Hollywood reported the showing as the lowest a Summer Opening has done in overnight results since Barcelona in 1992, Nielson’s final numbers showed it was the lowest-rated since Athens in 2004. Viewership ratings took a severe hit by any measure.
Some analyses have gone into great detail to explain why the decline might be the result of time zone differences and the one-hour delay on the East Coast and four-hour delay on the West Coast. Others have blamed it on the bad press Rio received during the run-up—polluted beaches, zika virus, terrorist threats and financial challenges, to name several. Yet others have delved into NBC’s programming prior to the parade of athletes. All of these probably had some affect. After all, how many people can truly be interested in watching a giddy Bob Costas visit with a golf geek ad nauseam about his golf program on the Golf Channel?
It’s also worth noting that the opening ceremony was not alone in suffering a decline in viewership. Saturday night’s viewership was down a whopping 28% from the number of people who watched the first night of the London 2012 Olympics. In spite of NBC’s optimism, the trend will likely continue throughout the end of the games, and not for any of the reasons thus far cited.
The most important factor the media analysts are missing is the fact that during the past four years numerous polls have shown that patriotism in America has declined by an almost identical margin. Equally as significant, this decline has been matched by a similar percentage increase in the number of people who believe it is wrong to embrace American exceptionalism. Patriotism and American exceptionalism are the two most basic values reflected in America’s participation in the Olympics, and both have become politically incorrect in today’s culture.
We should all be concerned about the implications of these shifts in attitude, because these shifts portend an evolving American frame of mind that is even more alarming. This evolving American psyche is substantially more important than the issue of fewer people watching athletes compete on television. The evidence is clear that an increasing number of Americans would rather diminish our patriotic pride and our standards in order to be on a par with less-developed nations, than would choose to maintain our national pride and high standards and simultaneously help raise the world around us to greatness.
Our nation’s self-image is tarnished. We don’t engender the pervasive national pride we once enjoyed, even during times of strife. If you’re not proud of your country, you have no stake in watching the Olympics unless you either aspire to compete yourself or know someone who does. The days of most people watching and rooting for America are over, although some do and some always will.
Our collective identity has been stomped on and thrown under the bus. And our kids and grandkids will suffer accordingly. Ancient writers often referred to patriotism as a virtue. The declining viewership of the Olympics herald the death throes of this virtue in America. It is sad that patriotism, along with so many other virtues that made our country great is on the wane.
It’ll be interesting to see if more symptoms of patriotism’s death throes surface later this year through declining presidential debate viewership and lower voter turnout.
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Dick Lyles is host of the radio show Dick Lyles on Business, Career and Work, and CEO of Origin Entertainment. Read his full bio here: http://www.catholicbusinessjournal.biz/content/dick-lyles-0