QUEEN ELIZABETH II - DERBY WINS RATINGS RACE

NBC's coverage of the Kentucky Derby on Saturday earned a 9.5 rating and a 21 share, down an insignificant 3 percent from last year when many viewers likely tuned in to see Queen Elizabeth II, who was in attendance. The figure was 7 percent higher than 2006's. Meanwhile, the Associated Press said that NBC producer Sam Flood had been prepared for the tragedy that followed the race when the second-place finisher, Eight Belles, broke both ankles and had to be euthanized on the track. Flood told AP that his staff was able to find video of the horse going down taken from the blimp camera. "You don't want to show anything visually that makes you ill," Flood said, "that you inside say, 'I don't want my wife or child to see that.'"

05/05/2008