Categories: OLD Media Moves

Fox Business story on Super Bowl attendance is misguided

Timothy Burke of Deadspin writes Friday about a Fox Business Network story on low Super Bowl attendance and how its premise is faulty.

Burke writes, “Fox Business Network attempted to report on Super Bowl ticket sales today with threats that ‘the NFL is expecting record-low attendance.’ That’s not true, but somehow what reporter Elizabeth MacDonald went on to say got even stupider.

“MacDonald tried to trace recent Super Bowl attendance trends to the popularity of the teams playing, claiming six-figure attendance four years ago was due to the Green Bay Packers’ and Pittsburgh Steelers’ involvement. She then projected the popularity of teams in the running for this year’s Super Bowl, and how that might affect attendance. Here’s the thing, though: only one number factors into Super Bowl attendance statistics, and that number is STADIUM CAPACITY.

“Every Super Bowl since the inaugural edition has sold out. That includes this year’s edition, which at roughly 72,000 seats would make it the 13th-lowest-attended Super Bowl ever — not even close to the record. Fox Business alleges a ‘report’ that the NFL is ‘bracing’ for record-low attendance, but never cites this report or where it came from. MacDonald finally questions whether the Super Bowl ‘will break even the 70,000 fan attendance level it’s been trending at.’ Given that the NFL mandates a minimum of 70,000 seats, we’re pretty sure they’ll hit that number.”

Read more here.

Chris Roush

Chris Roush was the dean of the School of Communications at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Connecticut. He was previously Walter E. Hussman Sr. Distinguished Professor in business journalism at UNC-Chapel Hill. He is a former business journalist for Bloomberg News, Businessweek, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Tampa Tribune and the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. He is the author of the leading business reporting textbook "Show me the Money: Writing Business and Economics Stories for Mass Communication" and "Thinking Things Over," a biography of former Wall Street Journal editor Vermont Royster.

Recent Posts

The evolution of the WSJ beyond finance

Rahat Kapur of Campaign looks at the evolution The Wall Street Journal. Kapur writes, "The transformation…

13 hours ago

Silicon Valley Biz Journal seeks a reporter

This position will be Hybrid in the office/market 3 days per week, and those days…

14 hours ago

Economist’s Bennet, WSJ’s Morrow receive awards

The Fund for American Studies presented James Bennet of The Economist with the Kenneth Y. Tomlinson Award…

21 hours ago

WSJ is testing AI-generated article summaries

The Wall Street Journal is experimenting with AI-generated article summaries that appear at the top…

22 hours ago

Cohen joining Bloomberg Tax

Zach Cohen is joining Bloomberg Tax to cover the fiscal cliff and tax issues on…

22 hours ago

Avila named interim editor for Automotive Dive

Larry Avila has been named interim editor for Automotive Dive, an Industry Dive publication. He…

23 hours ago