How are Neilson ratings calculated?
“We once were a ratings family for a week.” The Nielson company has the family complete a written log of what programs were watched. In the prescient show “Max Headroom,” the TV’s had instant ratings hooked up, but currently our TV’s do not have that 2-way communication. It is still a one-way street: network signals all come flooding into your house and you choose which of those signals you’ll pay attention to. The only way the folks broadcasting ever know you watch is if you tell them, and that’s what the Nielson Co. sets up. Or you could call them, or write a letter. The punchline to this is that the first “Star Trek” got poor ratings, and so was canceled halfway thru its “five year mission.” AFTER it was canceled, some network flunky looked at the Nielson ratings and went to the bosses with the news that, while 3rd in the ratings, “Star Trek” was first
