How should we measure TV viewing and advertising?

Anyone who reads Blackfriars' research and blog knows that we believe measurement is essential to marketing success today. But measurements of TV viewership and advertising have always been reported through intermediaries like Nielsen and Arbitron -- and there's some evidence that those measurements may not be accurate any more. Today's New York Times asks the question of "What is the best way to measure TV viewing?" in Our Ratings, Ourselves. One of the great insights:

Change the way you count [television viewers and what programs they watch], for instance, and you can change where the advertising dollars go, which in turn determines what shows are made and what shows then are renewed. Change the way you count, and potentially you change the comparative value of entire genres (news versus sports, dramas versus comedies) as well as entire demographic segments (young versus old, men versus women, Hispanic versus black). Change the way you count, and you might revalue the worth of sitcom stars, news anchors and -- when a single ratings point can mean millions of dollars -- the revenue of local affiliates and networks alike. Counting differently can even alter the economics of entire industries, should advertisers (thanks to the P.P.M.) discover that radio or the Web is a better way to get people to know their brand or buy their products or even vote for their political candidates. Change the way you measure America's culture consumption, in other words, and you change America's culture business. And maybe even the culture itself.