The initial broadcast drew a peak audience of 113 000, up 495% above the slot average, making it the highest rated documentary on History, the second highest rated show ever for the channel after
Storage Wars and the highest rated day for History ever. An additional screening on the same night drew an additional 45 000 adult viewers.
Total broadcasts of the documentary bring the combined reach in South Africa alone, to 604 000 viewers. According to Adam MacDonald, VP of programming at A+E Networks UK, “The impressive viewership figures – which are only the start – prove that we were right in believing that this momentous documentary will be truly inspirational for our global audiences.”
Aletta Alberts head of Content at MultiChoice agrees, “MultiChoice is very pleased with the performance of
Miracle Rising: South Africa. The project touched the lives of both the South African and international viewing public, as can be seen from the unprecedented viewership numbers on History. The production will be seen by 350 million viewers globally, providing a brilliant account on the history of South Africa’s road to democracy. It is clear that the South African miracle still grabs the imagination of people globally”.
Within 20 minutes of the start of the documentary it was trending on
Twitter (#MiracleRising). During the broadcast, more than 2 500 Tweets about the documentary had been fired into cyberspace. It became the number one trend in South Africa, even bigger than the African Cup of Nations final.
The impact of Miracle Rising: South Africa was maximised by an intensive marketing and promotion campaign across multiple communication channels, the biggest yet undertaken by History. A full range of in-house TV promos, as well as barter deals on other channels meshed with an intense campaign in newspapers, magazines, radio and cinema in the weeks leading up to the release of the documentary. A digital advertising campaign across multiple sites included page takeovers, pre rolls and rich media. The new History website –
www.historytv.co.za – was launched with
Miracle Rising: South Africa.
Michele Sparkes and Thys Botha, producers for Combined Artists the makers of the documentary said, “The response to
Miracle Rising: South Africa shows that it does represent hope and inspiration. And, we believe South Africans can learn from our past to help direct our future.”
Jeremy Ord, chairperson of Dimension Data, the sponsors for
Miracle Rising: South Africa added: “No-one who watched this documentary can fail to have been moved by the struggles and achievements of those people who brought us our democracy and turned us away from plunging downhill into violence. It is a true miracle.”
“Dimension Data is honoured to be involved in this moving documentary. When we became involved in this initiative over two years ago, the philosophy and principle behind the Group’s commitment was – and today still remains - nation building. We wanted to remind the people of South Africa – and indeed the world – about how far South Africa has come. I believe this documentary will resonate in the minds and hearts of people for a long time.”
Miracle Rising: South Africa includes untold stories of the four years leading up to the first democratic elections, from 1990 to 1994. It takes viewers on an emotional ride through a time when South Africa teetered on the edge of a civil war and reveals to the world the crucial decisions, small conversations, tragic ironies and audacious leaps of faith that combined to make the almost impossible vision of a democratic elections a reality. The documentary was produced by Combined Artists and sponsored by global ICT company Dimension Data.
Miracle Rising: South Africa is being broadcast globally on History during February and March to 300 million homes across the world