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"February 9th, 1964. Beatlemania hits primetime in the United States."
At 8 o’clock on February 9th 1964, 73 million people gathered in front their TV sets to see The Beatles’ first live performance on U.S. soil.
Why does the first quotation use "hits" rather than "hit", even though the event happened in the past.
As you say yourself, the first example is using present tense. Not a very common construct, but perfectly valid - the 'narrator' is basically doing a 'flashback' to the actual events.
