‘Duck Dynasty’ – Willie Robertson interview delivers slight ratings bump for Fox News

In case you were wondering what the popularity is for “Duck Dynasty” in the wake of some of the Phil Robertson comments out there, early indications are that there is still an audience for them out there … or at least some that were interested in hearing what Willie and his wife had to say in a new interview.

According to Deadline, Fox News’ special on New Year’s Eve managed to deliver a total of 2 million viewers during its 11:00 p.m. Eastern hour, which is when their interview with Willie and Korie Robertson took place. This is an increase of 33% from the year before, and also strong evidence that even though this interview was completely useless when it comes to sharing new information, there are some people out there who care enough about “Duck Dynasty” to spend New Year’s Eve hearing about them on a network that is not known for partying.

The biggest test for the Robertson clan is obviously going to be seeing just what sort of numbers they are able to pull in come Wednesday, January 15, which is when their show is set to come on A&E again with new episodes. Did their audience really all hold firm following the suspension / reinstatement of Phil Robertson, or have a number of their fans jumped ship? Regardless, we can imagine the media spin on things already:

1. If the show’s ratings are huge, some will just say that the controversy boosted the attention that the show received, and many new viewers were just checking it out of curiosity rather than any real measure of support for the family.

2. Meanwhile, if ratings fall insiders will point to the fact that the show was already on the decline in the ratings beforehand, and claim that the devoted fans of the Robertsons were all still there and watching.

Either way, we’re going to have more on this throughout the month, so stay tuned.