Audience Measurement and Media Policy: Audience Economics,the Diversity Principle, and the Local People Meter

Abstract

Nielsen Media Research's introduction of the local people meter (LPM) audience measurement service has encountered substantial resistance from industry stakeholders, politicians and sectors of the minority advocacy community. Much of this resistance has focused on the issue of the possible impact of audience measurement on the diversity of sources and content available to the television audience. This article examines the diversity policy concerns surrounding Nielsen Media Research's introduction of the LPM. The article explores whether the LPM represents a legitimate threat to source and content diversity, or whether the diversity principle has been largely co-opted in support of other economic and policy considerations of certain industry stakeholders.