The Oscars are like the Super Bowl - it’s really pointless to mention other events when those telecasts are on.  But one major thing separates this year’s Academy Awards from the recent championship game: viewers.

Let’s break down the numbers:

• Super Bowl XLII hit a record high this year; the 80th Annual Academy Awards hit a record low.
• Having said that, Sunday’s broadcast drew the largest audience of the evening.
• This year’s celebration of movies drew approximately 32 million viewers.  That’s a 20% drop from 2007 when The Departed won for Best Picture.
• This ceremony received the lowest numbers for any Oscars telecast measured by Nielsen.  That’s going back to 1974.
• Up until yesterday, the lowest-rated broadcast was in 2003 (when Chicago won).  At that time, our country had just recently gone into war with Iraq.