Posted by: neilebbbb
In reply to: None Date:1/11/2005 11:54:37 PM
Post #of 53952
Believe this - this is HUGE! look below-
Nielsen moves to track gay TV viewer habits
For the first time, the television viewing habits of the gay community may officially be counted. The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) and Nielsen Media Research, the television ratings company, are teaming up to work on monitoring the gay community's viewing habits.
When searching for families to track what they watch on TV, commonly known as Nielsen Households, Nielsen tries to include a representational demographic of the viewing area. Families that become Nielsen Households are asked about their age, income, education, gender and ethnicity. What the survey does not ask is a person's sexual orientation.
If a particular advertiser wanted to sell its products to the gay community, it would have to rely on strictly anecdotal evidence to find a particular program that may appeal to a gay audience.
"Information is power, and with this information the LGBT community, a community that has been largely defined by stereotype or misinformation, will benefit," Stephen Macias, GLAAD's entertainment media director, said. "Until you define what the gay market is you can't program to it, and you can't solicit the support of advertisers for programs that appeal to a gay audience."
GLAAD and Nielsen have held a series of meetings on both coasts to discuss different ways of counting gay and lesbian viewership in Nielsen's ratings research.
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published Thursday, September 23, 2004
"The short answer is, we don't know how we'll keep track of this community," said Jack Loftus with Nielsen Media Research. "But the long answer is GLAAD will help us figure out a way to accurately do that."
The two said they would continue working on a process to include gay people in Nielsen households.
Richard Kravitz of the TV Gay Guide said the pairing of GLAAD and Nielsen is an interesting combination.
"Having LGBT demographics for your show is considered good for marketing because we supposedly have disposable income; and that's what advertisers are after -- people who will spend money," Kravitz said. "It'll be interesting to see once advertisers find out that the LGBT community is watching if the shows then get higher-end advertising, say for luxury cars as opposed to Pampers and toothpaste. It will also be interesting to see if shows add any more gay characters."
GLAAD's Macias said Nielsen's inclusiveness of gay households is an important step. It could make the portrayal of gay people on television more accurate and inclusive.
"We're an important market, and yet we don't have the same representation and benefits as everyone else," he said. "This is an important way to show that LGBT family viewing habits really do count."
AI
