For NBC, the 1988 Summer Olympics provided something less than the thrill of victory. Critics complained that the coverage was uninspired, viewers groused about commercial overload, and ratings were a major disappointment. The prime- time audience averaged 16.9% of total households (compared with 23.2% for the 1984 Los Angeles Games), falling far short of projections and virtually wiping out the network's expected profits. So it came as a surprise last week when NBC took an Olympic high dive once again, spending a record $401 million for the TV rights to the 1992 Summer Games in Barcelona.
The most disappointed loser in...
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