Tuesday night, NBC averaged 12.2% of U.S. TV households — its lowest-rated Vancouver night so far — which was up 8% from the same night of the 2006 Torino Winter Games, which were the lowest-rated Olympics since 1988.

NBC's overall prime-time ratings for Vancouver so far are running 14% above Torino coverage, but 38% behind comparable coverage of the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake, whose time zone is only one hour different from Vancouver's.

NBC ratings P.S.: Think you know the USA's Olympic TV hotspots? Name the local TV market with the highest Vancouver Olympic ratings so far. It's Milwaukee, averaging 23.2% of local TV households, ahead of Denver, Salt Lake and Seattle.

Olympics West:

As traditionally happens with both Winter and Summer Olympics, the highest prime-time viewership is coming from Western time zones, with the Mountain Time Zone so far averaging 19.4% of households, followed by the Pacific at 16.5%, Central at 16.3% and Eastern at 15.8%. Reminiscent of Mark Twain's maxim that there are "lies, damned lies and statistics," these Olympic viewing levels are often cited as proof that it's largely OK with West Coasters that their prime-time Olympic action is tape-delayed. It doesn't prove that, given those on in the Pacific Time Zone have no choice.