# I'm a Nielsen household: suggestions? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 24, 2002, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-nielsen-household-suggestions/120650 "2002-07-24T23:27:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Mockingbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c68b51/32.png) [@Mockingbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mockingbird)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2002, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-nielsen-household-suggestions/120650/21 "2002-07-25T20:26:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lisa Ann \* > \*\*Charmed, now on Sundays on the WB! Channel 5 at 8:00 here on the west coast. Please! \*\* That would be great! Watch Angel as well! AND BUFFY! ---
**Author:** ![Intaglio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/71e660/32.png) [@Intaglio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intaglio)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2002, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-nielsen-household-suggestions/120650/22 "2002-07-25T21:16:30Z")
Birds of Prey on the WB its a Batman related show. ---
**Author:** ![Seven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Seven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seven)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 10:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-nielsen-household-suggestions/120650/23 "2002-07-26T10:00:45Z")
Really screw with them and rest something heavy on the remote so it just changes channels 24hrs a day. If you have to fill out a form saying what you watched just write “It’s hard to find a show I can stand for more then .005 seconds. Can you fix that please?” Then watch whatever you want on another TV. ---
**Author:** ![annieclaus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b5a626/32.png) [@annieclaus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/annieclaus)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-nielsen-household-suggestions/120650/24 "2002-07-26T14:33:37Z")
I think you should fill out your diary honestly. If you don’t watch TV at all, so be it. If you normally watch certain shows, do so and write the information down. And you were not selected at random. The Nielsen sample must replicate the characteristics of the market as a whole. But, I’d add a vote for THE MOLE 2 as well! ---
**Author:** ![Jman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jman/32/4416_2.png) [@Jman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jman)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-nielsen-household-suggestions/120650/25 "2002-07-26T14:39:49Z")
I agree with annieclaus…just watch TV normally. If a show is boring that week, change channels. Just do what you’d do if you weren’t a Nielsen house. Jman ---
**Author:** ![Hedda\_Rosa](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hedda_rosa/32/1204_2.png) [@Hedda\_Rosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hedda_Rosa)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-nielsen-household-suggestions/120650/26 "2002-07-26T18:59:54Z")
Another vote for PBS - if you are going to alter your viewing habits for this week. I think though the right thing would be to watch TV as you normally would. How do they account for folks who like to flip between channels, or just surf for 15 min? Is there space on the form for “Spent half an hour looking through the dreck for something watchable”? Twiddle ---
**Author:** ![evilhanz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba8739/32.png) [@evilhanz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/evilhanz)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-nielsen-household-suggestions/120650/27 "2002-07-26T20:17:06Z")
Watch **Family Guy** oh wait … it’s too late. Thanks again Nielsen! ---
**Author:** ![tanstaafl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba8739/32.png) [@tanstaafl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tanstaafl)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-nielsen-household-suggestions/120650/28 "2002-07-26T20:48:48Z")
Well, I was going to suggest _Farscape_ and _The Mole_ but since others have beat me to it I’ll be on my way… ---
**Author:** ![middleman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@middleman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/middleman)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-nielsen-household-suggestions/120650/29 "2002-07-26T21:25:08Z")
Scrubs. Definitely Scrubs. Also, if Andy Richter is still on, give it a nod. (I am amazed as I have never met a Nielsen viewer!) I think it would be awesome just to leave it blank. When they ask you why, tell them you are more of a “book person” ---
**Author:** ![World\_Eater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@World\_Eater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/World_Eater)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-nielsen-household-suggestions/120650/30 "2002-07-26T22:01:11Z")
I’ll second nothing with Bob Saget! Simpsons & Stehl (sp?) timbersports series please. ---
**Author:** ![Doubting\_Robert](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e495f1/32.png) [@Doubting\_Robert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doubting_Robert)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-nielsen-household-suggestions/120650/31 "2002-07-26T22:14:33Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Intaglio \* > \*\*Birds of Prey on the WB its a Batman related show. \*\* That’s going to be difficult. **dqa** only has one week as a Nielsen household. “Birds of Prey” doesn’t begin its run until this fall. ---
**Author:** ![Melandry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8797f3/32.png) [@Melandry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melandry)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2002, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-nielsen-household-suggestions/120650/32 "2002-07-27T01:45:45Z")
I wonder what they do if they send their little booklet to a household without television? Did they let you know beforehand, and then send you the booklet? Or does it just show up one day, like a surprise? In a similar vein, back when I had a TV, I got to be part of a test audience for some “drug war” drama being tested by NBC. It was sort of neat, because I had to answer a whole long survey over the phone the next day, so I felt more like my opinion really counted. I should find out if they picked up the show, it wasn’t half bad, although it was pretty violent… ---
**Author:** ![Melandry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8797f3/32.png) [@Melandry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melandry)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2002, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-nielsen-household-suggestions/120650/33 "2002-07-27T01:50:26Z")
Aha! It seems it may be a [mid-season replacement](http://www.tvtome.com/tvtome/servlet/ShowMainServlet/showid-10097). ---
**Author:** ![dqa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dqa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dqa)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2002, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-nielsen-household-suggestions/120650/34 "2002-07-27T16:55:42Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by p@cific@812 \* > \*\*I offer a third vote for Farscape. That, or the Telemundo show with that guy in the bee suit. \*\* Still haven’t seen Farscape, because as noted earlier, I have no cable. Unfortunately, there’s also no Univision or Telemundo station in this area. The Mole is a given, even though it’s obviously Dorothy… Charmed, Angel, Buffy - probably not. Maybe Angel, to get it straight in my mind from Dark Angel and Touched by an Angel. I think at one point in the season, all three of these shows were on at the same time. PBS - yeah, I usually find a good show every day or two on there. > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Melandry \* > **I wonder what they do if they send their little booklet to a household without television? Did they let you know beforehand, and then send you the booklet? Or does it just show up one day, like a surprise?** They called a couple weeks ahead of time. At that point they asked how many TVs, cable, satellite, demographic info. I suppose if they already had enough people in my category, they could have said, sorry, we don’t need you. > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Twiddle \* > **How do they account for folks who like to flip between channels, or just surf for 15 min? Is there space on the form for “Spent half an hour looking through the dreck for something watchable”?** Anything watched for more than 5 minutes is to be recorded. This could be tricky, since the log is segmented in 15 minute increments. At the end of the log is a comment area > [@](#): > > \*\*Please … use the space below to comment about TV in general. You may wish to comment about local programming, such as news, etc. Also, you may wish to list here any favorite programs you were unable to watch this week. \*\*Also at the end is a section to write programs recorded on a VCR if another show was being watched at the same time. Otherwise, the VCR shows are noted at the time they are broadcast, with “VCR” written next to them. ---
**Author:** ![TVGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/82dd89/32.png) [@TVGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2002, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-nielsen-household-suggestions/120650/35 "2002-07-27T19:47:34Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by dqa \* > \*\*… My new status as a powerbroker in the critical mid-summer ratings period … \*\* Um, sorry to burst a bubble, but the July sweep is about the only one that we DON’T pay a whole lot of attention to in my industry. May and November are WAY more important for setting ad rates. But I’ll put a plug in for “The Simpsons” anyway 🆒 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-nielsen-household-suggestions/120650.md?page=1)