'60 Minutes' Trump Interview Loses to Obama

The contentious end of the presidential campaign took its toll on TV, with the final presidential debates and election-night coverage drawing viewers away from just about everything else. Even though political interest remains high even after the election, there are signs that viewers might be losing a little bit of interest of watching politics on TV.

President-elect Donald Trump gave his first interview after the election to 60 Minutes, and that interview aired last Sunday on the newsmagazine show. The episode's ratings were high for the series, and some observers are even giving the interview credit for boosting ratings for NCIS: Los Angeles, which immediately follows 60 Minutes. NCIS had a great night and became the first scripted series to beat The Walking Dead since 2013. Given TWD's falling ratings this season, however, it's a stretch to blame its loss of the night for the first time in years on Trump.

In absolute terms, though, the interview was no ratings blockbuster. Sunday Night Football on NBC beat 60 Minutes by about 25 percent, and ratings for Trump's interview were much lower than those of President-elect Obama's first interview on the show in 2008. Obama's interview drew 24.5 million viewers, compared to 18.8 million for Trump.