Los debates están batiendo records de audiencia

The New York Times:

In September 2007, Fox News put Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee, Ron Paul, Rudy Giuliani and a man who was, back then, a long shot for the Republican presidential nomination, John McCain, on a debate stage in New Hampshire. The face-off attracted 3.2 million viewers — the most of any debate so far that year.

This September, Fox’s debate — in Florida, with Mr. Romney, Mr. Paul and new names like Herman Cain and Michele Bachmann — attracted almost twice as many viewers: 6.1 million, the highest so far this year. The very first televised Republican debate this spring attracted almost 3.3 million viewers, while the first debate in the spring of 2007 had 1.8 million.

What explains the fact that debates this year are garnering almost twice as many viewers as any of the early debates, Democratic or Republican, did four years ago? Cable news executives don’t know for sure, but they have theories. Chief among them is that widespread anxiety about the economy and disapproval of the political system is building viewership.