Nielsen to TV Networks: Don't Blame Us

Miami Herald ^ | November 24, 2003 | David Bauder

[WaterDragon]

NEW YORK - The company that measures television usage has a message for the broadcast networks: Don't blame us for pointing out that young male viewers are fleeing.

Nielsen Media Research released a report late Monday strongly defending itself against complaints by the networks that its research is faulty.

Through mid-November, Nielsen has said that prime-time TV viewing by men aged 18 to 34 is down nearly 8 percent this fall compared to autumn 2002.

That statistic has baffled and infuriated the major broadcast networks, particularly since the young male audience is elusive and advertisers pay a premium to reach it.

Nielsen said that it has checked its numbers, and checked again, and believes them to be accurate. Young men are turning on TV in the same numbers as past years, but are staying for a much shorter time, Nielsen said.

Among men aged 18 to 24, use of DVDs, VCRs and video games has increased by 9 percent this year....(snip)

[Spruce]

Joe lunch box to Nielsen: "Eat me"

[JennysCool]

EVERYBODY'S fleeing network TV.

[Columbine]

So maybe they don't like all the new gay shows. DUH!

[Archie Bunker on steroids]

Network TV...all gay...all the time....shoved down your throat.

[SAMWolf]

It's the progamming, stupid!!!!!!! There's nothing on that 18 to 34 year old males want to watch!

[Indy Pendance]

Well, duh, it's not their fault, it's Bush's fault.

[Ophiucus]

Yep!

Alan Wurtzel, NBC's chief researcher, had not finished reading Nielsen's report late Monday and would not comment on it."Historically, we have never seen these kind of declines except where there is a problem with the sample," he said earlier.

Perhaps he should consider that the programs on lately suck, plain and simple.

The only show I can think of that I regularly tune into is CSI (the original, NOT the Miami Vice knockoff).

How about the rest of you? Any shows on that you actually like?

[concerned about politics]

That statistic has baffled and infuriated the major broadcast networks, particularly since the young male audience is elusive and advertisers pay a premium to reach it.

Too feminized. It's either female victimhood or queers drooling over each others hairy butts. What's there for real men? Nothing.

[WackyKat]

There's nothing on that 18 to 34 year old males want to watch!

Let me do one episode of big-breasted women driving monster trucks, and I can turn that whole thing around.

[SAMWolf]

LOL! "Tastes great! Less Filling!" Cat fight commercials included?

[freedumb2003]

Law & Order (all 3)
I used to like JAG but they got all wierd with Harm coming and going. I DESPISED the NCIS series they tried to float.

Other than that, TV Land (Mr. Ed is a fav) and my guilty pleasure Charmed (the older episodes were much, much better)

All else stinketh.

And I never liked Seinfeld.

[xrp]

Through mid-November, Nielsen has said that prime-time TV viewing by men aged 18 to 34 is down nearly 8 percent this fall compared to autumn 2002.

Xbox Live debuted. Much more entertaining than anything any television or cable channel could produce.

[cavtrooper21]

Just the standard liberal act, shoot the messenger when you don't like the message.
Favorite activity of most despotic Communist rulers, Stalin come to mind first..

[Hawkeye's Girl]

NBC agrees with you.

The fall season is bombing because "some of the programming just sucked," NBC entertainment chief Jeff Zucker said today in New York in a speech to the International Radio & Television Society Foundation.

[potlatch]

Are you going to play the lead role??

[Hawkeye's Girl]

I watch the 3 Law and Order shows on NBC and the Handler (FBI agents going undercover) on CBS. That's it for broadcast network programming that is not sports.

[Calvin Locke]

Oh, I'll watch CSI and even ER, though I'm put off by the extreme PC preaching. However, I watch them on C[anadian]TV.

TLC/DISC/History. "Peacemakers", some "Monk". NBC is screwing around with the b-class, but watchable "Las Vegas".

Still watch "NYPD Blue".

"South Park" is good.

Skify Channel is becoming all but completely unwatchable, except for the decent retreads.

Unless there's some unseen or rewatchable movies, I'd rather listen to shortwave programming.

Oh, "Nip/Tuck" isn't bad, but I may consider not watching due to all the popup ads (with sound effects) during other shows.

[RayChuang88]

It seems that I have to again explain to the TV networks what Alvin Toffler warned some 24 years ago in his book The Third Wave: as communications technology improves, the large TV audience for broadcast TV will rapidly decline.

In the age of 60-plus channel cable TV, 200-plus channel direct-satellite broadcast TV, pre-recorded home video systems (videocassettes and DVD), the modern videogame console and the public Internet, no wonder why broadcast TV ratings are taking a nosedive.

[TheBigB]

There's nothing on that 18 to 34 year old males want to watch!

[WaterDragon]

Wouldn't they pull in those demographics if they showed heroic and patriotic and true movies about our military guys these days? Now, that would be worth getting a decent TV!!!!!

[fatima]

Hello TV world,their friends are dying in a war.New product fast,make it positive because you will lose again.

[proust]

Being in the male 18-34 target audience, I gotta say that the complaints about the feminiziation of TV are right on the money. I'm unable to watch more than 15 seconds of a Bachelor show or an Extreme Makeover or a Joe Millionaire. What 18-34 guy wants to sit around watching another guy pick and choose from tons of beautiful women week after week? It's not exactly helping my lot in life.

I like the Simpsons, even though it's gotten so uneven. But even a substandard episode is better than most other shows. (I watch Alias and 24 not out enjoyment, but out of sheer amazement at how bad the writing has gotten on these once interesting shows.)

[ntnychik]

Too feminized. It's either female victimhood or queers drooling over each others hairy butts. What's there for real men? Nothing.

May I add the shows with single struggling (clueless) parents who are at the mercy of their glib teens, and the shows with the bright sassy wife and the totally dufus husband?

[WackyKat]

Are you going to play the lead role??

As I am a dude, my breast size would no doubt disappoint the viewers

[SAMWolf]

LOL! Not familiar with the show, I don't watch much TV that isn't cable. Just don't tell me the play lesbians.

[SAMWolf]

Heck I'd settle for re-runs of "Combat" and "The Gallent Men"

[TheBigB]

They do not play lesbians at all, and they are constantly being squeezed into the tiniest costumes the censors will allow. Rose McGowan has always cranked my tractor. :)

[potlatch]

Sorry about that Wacky!! Gave me a good laugh though. It's hard to tell by screen names, potlatch doesn't tell you a thing, lol.

[concerned about politics]

May I add the shows with single struggling (clueless) parents who are at the mercy of their glib teens, and the shows with the bright sassy wife and the totally dufus husband?

That's what my husband said. They make the average guy look like a total idiot. Even the queers are glorifyed above the normal guy.
I don't see how the networks can't figure that one out! Either they're PC brainwashed, or it's part of an agenda. They get what they've earned - shunning.

[potlatch]

You might enjoy this, LOL.

[Richard Kimball]

Most of the people running network television are homosexual, and glorifying homosexuality is more important than anything, including ratings.

[Mo1]

"Historically, we have never seen these kind of declines except where there is a problem with the sample," he said earlier.

Denial is hard for them to deal with

Face it .. Your shows are TRASH!!

[SengirV]

I'm in that Demo and here is what I look for -

#1 Football - College and Pro in football season
#2 CSI including reruns on Spike TV on Friday night
#3 Stargate/Farscape(Damn Sci-fi for cancelling Farscape for trash like TRemors and scare tactics)
#4 Law&Orders - especially those playing nightly on some cable networks
#5 News, usually I check in when I have time, not on their schedule.
#6 Most Extreme Elimination Challenge - Guilty pleasure on Spike TV. Japanesse physical gameshow with non matching english dubs. No OSHA over there - Only show to make me laugh out loud since watching Monty Python reruns.
#7 Old Movies on AMC/TCM - Show Midway, Patton, Tora Tora Tora, John Wayne, Errol Flynn movies and my remote collects dust - And that is saying a lot for me.

[SAMWolf]

The last time I saw Alissa Milano was on "Who's the Boss". Been a long time.

[HitmanLV]

You know I watched a lot of TV up until I went to college, then I stopped watching, and never really came back. I think the average american watches about 5 hours of TV a day. I usually watch about five hours a week or so - and Tivo Compressed TV at that!

Of course I also watch movies on DVD and videos of course.

[WackyKat]

Good cartoon, thanks

[Paul C. Jesup]

Oh really, I wonder how many Americans know that one third of all Nielsen boxes in the U.S. are located in New York City.

When Farscape (sci-fi show) was canseled by Sci-fi, several of the fans did a lot of digging into how the Nielsen system worked and they found this little tidbit and others.

By the way, I am looking forward to see the Farscape Mini-Series next year.

[Mo1]

How about the rest of you? Any shows on that you actually like?

Sponge Bob Square Pants RULES !! ..

But then the BBC said he was gay .. so I'm not sure what to think

[WackyKat]

the shows with the bright sassy wife and the totally dufus husband?

The aliens who are studying our TV transmissions must be convinced that female humans are far more intelligent then male humans

Of course, female humans believe that, too

[Paul C. Jesup]

See post 38. And check out http://www.watchfarscape.com/

[MissAmericanPie]

Too socialized is more like it. Who wants to watch a bunch of subtle communist indoctrination about how weak, clownish, and ineffectual American men are?

They can get that abuse from their girl friends.

[WackyKat]

Farscape was great. I loved the female characters(and their outfits)

[jmcclain19]

LOL! "Tastes great! Less Filling!" Cat fight commercials included?

mmmm

[Ophiucus]

The fall season is bombing because "some of the programming just sucked," NBC entertainment chief Jeff Zucker said today

That's hilarious! Thanks for the article link.

[Psycho_Bunny]

The average 18-34 year-old male doesn't like watching "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy"?

"Will and Grace"?

"Joe Bachlor" or whatever the stupid, repackaged fantasy relationship, orgy slut bullsh!t is named this week?

Wow.  Who'd a thunk it?

[kmiller1k]

Arrested Development Fox Sundays 9:30pm/8:30pm c

[suzyq5558]

short answer NOPE. i dont watch anything on the networks. cept simpsons and thats rare.

[Ophiucus]

Thanks folks for the responses.

Interesting amount of agreement. Plus, I have to agree with the comments on the feminized, pro-homosexual, "nontraditional" families, etc.

I wonder if anyone at the networks thought about studying the viewing preferences between liberal and conservative viewers. There could be a huge market in "Bush Country." FoxNews learned that, at least.

Oh, and Mo1 - I wouldn't worry too much, Sponge Bob being a sponge wouldn't be homosexual. I don't think sponges have male and female sexes.

Maybe Sponge Bob Square Pants is the true metrosexual. :-)

[openotherend]

We are a Neilson family this week during the sweeps. So far we've registered Fox News, HGTV, Discovery, The History Channel, and AMC. Absolutely no alphabet networks, no MTV, no VH1. I rule the clicker. Don't mess with me, just write down what I tell you.