CHAPTER 9
Audience Measurement
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LEARNING OBJECTIVES
After reading this chapter students should be able to understand the following concepts:
The ratings business: Understand how and why Arbitron, Nielsen, and their competitors collect and use
data on audiences for local, network, and syndicated clients.
Collecting data: Describe different methods of gathering ratings data: diaries, passive meters, people
meters, coincidentals, recall, personal interviews.
Samples: Comprehend how sampling works, and understand sampling error, response rate, and sampling
deficiencies.
Determining ratings and shares: Describe market delineation; units of measure; how ratings, HUT, and
shares are derived; and the meanings of cume and demographics.
Use and abuse of ratings: Understand industry self-policing measures, the reliability and validity of
ratings, and problems with ratings such as hyping.
CHAPTER FOCUS
We all know programs or local anchors canceled because ratings were low. We continually hear of the top
ten or twenty TV network broadcast programs based on ratings. In fact, the rating system seems to run the
industry. But just how do ratings work? What questions are they designed to answer? Are they accurate
and fair?
The services of Arbitron, Nielsen, and their competitors are described. The various set-use data collection
procedures are described, including diaries, passive meters, people meters, telephone calls, and personal
interviews. The ratings industry has undergone major changes within the past couple of years due
primarily to the introduction of “people meters.” Nielsen is now developing a “passive people meter,”
which should solve some of the inherent problems connected with the people meters in use today.
Most ratings questions fall in the category of sampling procedures: “How can a small number of people
represent the entire population of a country?” The answer is sampling, and students need to know how
and why sampling works.
The point that most people forget is just exactly what is being measured by ratings: Is the television set
turned on, to what channel, and is anyone “watching” it? What is not being measured is program quality,
whether those who watched liked what they saw, if they understood it, and why they chose to watch one
instead of another program. We also don’t know if viewers devoted full attention or were engaged in
other activities while watching television. But qualitative measures help answer these questions.
This chapter describes how ratings companies apply these concepts to national and local markets. Market
Terms, Concepts, and Exercises
Ratings Business
Terms: Arbitron, A. C. Nielsen, Statistical Research Inc. (SRI), ratings periods, Nielsen Local Service,
sweeps weeks (sweeps), Nielsen Television Index (NTI), National Hispanic Television Index, RADAR
(Radio’s All-Dimension Audience Research)
oCompare measurement techniques used by different media. Note that broadcast ratings are
dependent on sampling, whereas newspapers and magazines have verified circulation figures.
However, this does not automatically make the latter more accurate. Careful sampling can yield
accurate data. Further, a person who buys a newspaper does not promise to read every story or
notice every advertisement. The measurement most closely related to actual media usage is
probably the number of tickets sold in a movie theater.
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oUsing Exhibits 9.a through 9.c, contrast ratings developed for local radio, local broadcast
television, and network broadcast television. Why the variance among ratings reports? How could
a local television station use this information?
Collecting Data
Terms: diary, meter, diary fatigue, Set Meter or Audimeter, People Meters, Portable People Meters,
ScanAmerica, wand, bar code, passive people meter, coincidental telephone calls, telephone recall,
personal interview, personal meter
oList and explain methods used to collect audience data. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages
of each. Find out if students have ever been part of a radio or television ratings survey. Have them
share with the class their experiences. Were they always honest in reporting their radio or
television use? Did they record the information as they watched, or did they do it once a day or
less frequently?
Sampling
Terms: sampling, behavioral sampling, time sampling, number of people sampled, probability, random
selection, sample frames, multistage area probability sampling, random digit dialing, point of diminishing
returns, sampling error, nonsampling error, bias, response rate, nonresponse errors, in-tab sample
oEmphasize that ratings measure only specific, limited behavior during a given time period. They
do not measure audience opinions of or attitudes toward programs. Nor do ratings tell us if
audiences liked the program or why they chose to watch in the first place.
oMany students may have a hard time accepting concepts of audience sampling (unless they’re
statistics majors). Yet ratings play a decisive role in the future success of programs and talent.
Some key points you should explain are listed under Terms.
Determining Ratings and Shares
Terms: area of dominant influence (ADI), designated market area (DMA), metro area, total service area
(TSA), household rating, share, households using television (HUT), persons using radio (PUR),
cumulative audience (cume), reach, circulation, demographic breakouts or demographics
oExplain market delineation. Note that ADI and DMA measure the same thing. Explain that an
entire county can belong to only one market and that the ADIs range in size from New York City
(No. 1) to Glendive, Montana (No. 210). Use Exhibit 9.g to show market definition concepts.
oHow is a “household” defined? What living areas are not considered a household? What about
dorm rooms or fraternity houses? Do households remain a logical unit of measurement for
television today?
oExplain and demonstrate how each of the following is calculated: rating, HUT, share, cume. The
supplemental activity at the end of this chapter may be useful in explaining these concepts, as is
Exhibit 9.h.
Use and Abuse of Ratings
Terms: Media Rating Council (MRC), reliability, validity, hyping or hypoing, tampering, qualitative
ratings
oEmphasize again that ratings are estimates. It is hard to keep this in mind when we continue to
read stories about rating data that portray them as completely accurate measurements of the
viewing patterns of the entire population.
Broadcast Audiences
Terms: set penetration (saturation), set use, Marshall McLuhan and “medium is the message,” Paul Klein
and “least objectionable program” (LOP), tuning inertia, remote control devices (RCDs), restless viewer
or grazer, demographics
oDiscuss other findings reported here. During what portion of the day is the HUT level highest?
During what season of the year is the HUT level highest? During what portion of the day is radio
use the highest? Are there seasonal variations in radio usage as there are with television?
oDiscuss Paul Klein’s LOP theory. What is “tuning inertia”? Ask your students if they recognize
such behavior in their friends or themselves.
groups viewing television according to age, sex, household size, and household income. How is
this information useful to programmers and advertisers? Note that basic cable and basic/pay cable
viewers spend more time with television than over-the-air -only viewers. Why?
Cable Audiences
Terms: homes passed, cable subscribers, Nielson Home Video Index (NHI), Cable National Audience
Demographic Reports, Nielsen Cable Audience Reports, franchise areas, cable viewing patterns
oDiscuss the inherent problems with measuring local cable audiences. Why is research on the
national cable services important?
oNote how viewers use cable. Why has basic cable viewing increased while pay cable has declined
slightly? What other viewing patterns are evident?
Recording Devices
Terms: time-shifting, zipping, zapping, VCR, DVD, DVR, average commercial minute (ACM), “C3”
oAsk when students or their families got their first DVR. How did it change their lives? You may
want to explore this change in light of changes made with the introduction of the VCR (Do you
remember your family’s first VCR?) or their first television set.
Measuring Internet Use
Terms: Online Publishers Association, Internet, World Wide Web, web traffic analytics, site metrics,
page-level metrics, hits, traffic, VideoCensus Nielson/NetRatings, comScore, Hitwise
oWhat are the fundamental units of measure for internet use? What Web Sites are most popular?
What sites do your students use on a regular basis?
oWhy are Web site providers and advertisers interested in knowing who is accessing sites?
Other Applied Research
Terms: attitudinal research, focus groups, photomatics, program analyzer, theater previews or auditorium
testing, physiological testing, squirm test, audience response
oHow does nonratings research differ from ratings research?
oWhat kind of data can be derived from focus groups that cannot come from audience rating data?
How can this information and material gained from other audience tests be used for new program
PEARSON MYCOMMKIT RESOURCES
Each chapter of the MyCommKit for Head’s Broadcasting in America, 10th Edition includes chapter
learning objectives, practice quizzes, key terms flash card, and select media.
OUTSIDE AUDIO/VISUAL RESOURCES
Broadcast Media (VHS, 16 min., 1994)
Examining advertising on broadcast television, cable television, and radio, this video discusses rating
systems and teaches how GRPs are calculated. It explains the importance of CPP (cost per point) for
television media buyers. Distributor: Insight Video.
Can You Believe TV Ratings? (VHS, 60 min., 1992)
This program examines the tricky business of finding out who’s watching what and when. Ratings are
determined by people meters installed in selected homes, which is more reliable than the old diary system,
but far from precise. From the WGBH collection. Distributor: Films for the Humanities and Sciences.
Radio Industry (VHS, 28 min., 1998)
Many pundits have predicted the demise of radio, but radio’s mystique and extraordinary ability to adapt
have repeatedly proved them wrong. In this program, the business side of public and commercial radio
broadcasting is explored in depth by industry insiders. Host Ray Suarez and others from NPR’s “Talk of
Advertising (VHS, 28 min., 1998)
This program features a historical survey of the methods of advertising in the United States. Topics
include the mass-marketing triumph of Lydia Pinkham’s nineteenth century patent medicines, the role of
Audience and Feedback (VHS, 28 min., 1998)
This program explores the characteristics that define a desirable audience, the history of audience ratings,
and the ways in which audiences are assessed. With billions of advertising dollars at stake, marketers,
Is TV Going Down the Tube? (VHS, 27 min., 2000)
Has television programming been degraded by the drive to deliver high ratings and preferred
demographic groups to advertisers? This far-ranging and insightful debate is moderated by syndicated
columnist and author Ben Wattenberg. William Baker, President and CEO of WNET, and George
The Unelected: The Media (VHS, 38 min., 2000)
In an environment increasingly dominated by network ratings and tabloid-driven stories, the line between
journalism and entertainment is blurred. In this program, correspondent Hedrick Smith goes behind the
hype and the headlines to show how the media affect the national agenda and the standards of political
The Press and the Clinton Allegations: A Case Study (VHS, 12 min., 2000)
If the Clinton/Lewinsky affair—officially broken to the world by The Washington Post—did not actually
Marketing Research and Information (VHS, 9 min., 2000)
“Who needs that product, anyway?” This program provides the inside scoop on how to gather consumer
data. Distributors of secondary information from the government—including the Statistical Abstract of
Windows on Asia-Pacific: Asian Television Commercials (VHS, 47 min., 1998)
Media visionary Marshall McLuhan once observed that advertising provides the richest and most faithful
reflection of a society’s culture. What, then, do television commercials reveal about the non-Western
Sneakers, Laptops, and the Homeless (VHS, 76 min., 1997)
Nike and Apple, Pepsi, McDonald’s, fast cars, fast food, dog food, and some public service award
winners for the Red Cross, anti-drinking/driving, and the Coalition for the Homeless. Seventy-five
stunning ads and interviews with Joe Pytka, CD Jeff Goodby, CDs Adrian Hayward (Australia) and Fujio
Iwasaki (Japan), and London director Tarsem. Distributor: Films for the Humanities and Sciences.
From Scooters to Fryers (VHS, 62 min., 1997)
Award-winning ads for Peugeot scooters, Mazda batteries, cheese, chocolate drink, face cream, chickens,
The Fine Art of Separating People from Their Money (VHS, 115 min., 1997)
With clips from 60 commercials, this program examines the blurring of the lines between such different
creative disciplines as filmmaking and advertising. It explores the effectiveness and psychology of
advertising tactics and evaluates the use of shock in advertising. Distributor: Insight Media.
Advertising Agency (VHS, 25 min., 1990)
This program describes the organization of advertising agencies and the functions they perform, including
studying a client’s product, analyzing target markets, and preparing a promotion plan. Employees
describe daily operations in the functional areas of creative services, account management, marketing
services, management, and finance. Distributor: Insight Media.
The Role of the Advertising Agency (VHS, 25 min., 1991)
This video offers a detailed look at the inner workings of Australian advertising agency Box Emery and
Broadcasting Ratings Exercise Sheet
Nielsen Company estimates the number of TV households in the United States at 95 million. The average
household has 2.63 persons as occupants. For the following examples, assume that within the
Philadelphia market (ADI/DMA), there are 2.5 million homes.
1. If the Nielsen Television Index (NTI) rating for a particular program is 10, how many households in
the United States are tuned to this program? Use the rating of 10 expressed as a decimal (or .10),
2. If the Nielsen Station Index (NSI) for the Philadelphia DMA is 20, how many homes are tuned to
this program? Again, use the rating of 20 expressed as a decimal (or .20), and multiply total TV
households in Philadelphia by that decimal.
Homes with sets in use 1,250
Total TV households 2,500
3. What is the rating for KYW?
4. What is the rating for WPVI?
5. What is the share for WCAU?
6. How many households are tuned to KYW?
7. If a 30-second spot on KYW costs $750, what is the cost per thousand (CPM) for this spot?
8. WPVI generally prices their spots to yield a CPM of $5.25. What would you as an advertiser expect
to pay for a spot on the six o’clock news?
9. What is the HUT level for the 6:00 to 6:15 quarter-hour?
10. Use the HUT level and the share to find the rating for WCAU.
11. Use the HUT level and the rating to find the share for WPVI.
12. During the 7:30 to 7:45 quarter-hour, a program gets a rating of 12 and a share of 20. From this
information, calculate the HUT for this period.