UPDATED: Nearly 67 million people watched the second presidential debate Sunday, according to Nielsen. CBS led the way with 16.5 million total viewers, good for a quarter share of the total 66.5 million viewer audience. ABC was next at 11.5 million, followed by CNN at 11.3 million.
NBC aired Sunday Night Football instead.
Fox News Channel had 9.9 million viewers and Fox broadcast 5.6 million.
MSNBC drew 5.5 million, Univision had 2.4 million, Fox Business Network 565,000 and CNBC 395,000.
The debate, showcasing uncommon testiness between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, was moderated by CNN’s Anderson Cooper and ABC News’ Martha Raddatz. Featuring a town hall setting, attendees also asked questions of the party leaders.
The second presidential debate in a series typically draws far fewer viewers than the first, though interest this time around was heightened by the release of an 11-year-old video showing Trump expressing misogynistic thoughts alongside then Access Hollywood host Billy Bush. Trump apologized for his prurient comments near the top of the Sunday debate.
The first debate between the two, Sept. 26 on Long Island, drew 84 million viewers.
The Oct. 9 affair had CBS on top of the 25-54 demographic at 6.4 million, followed by CNN at 4.9 million and ABC at 4.6 million. Fox News was at 2.9 million and Fox broadcast at 2.8 million. MSNBC drew 1.8 million and Univision 1.2 million.
