[BC] Alleged Arbitron Hogwash

[Peter Moncure]

Rich Wood wrote:
> ------ At 08:47 AM 2/7/2007, Tom Taggart wrote: -------
>
>> "I see them as a neutral provider of information. That information is 
>> considered credible enough to drive
>> most of the advertising decisions made in the industry."
>>
>> Hogwash and balogna!
>
> If you say so.
>
> Rich
When I was in the fray as CE of various stations, I used to opine that 
this Company was badly in need of a corporate lobotomy.  I'd been to 
Maryland to personally view the diaries, and for all but the larger 
markets the statistics collapse with far too much weight given to the 
individual diary's legibility--you should see some of them!  A bad joke.

Since then I have been a diarist (!!, still have my shiny new dollar 
bill) and have been in the data business for decades and I've softened.  
At least they are trying with PPM to improve their methodology--the 
elephant of mobile listening has been threatening to trample them for 
years.  Jury's out.  Others have tried, with limited success, to 
compete, and it is not only their entrenched position that bred failure, 
it's a tough problem.

Still, the mentality of "throw the bastards out" every few years is 
appealing, in the case of Arbitron, Neilsen, BMI, ASCAP and many of the 
politicians of all stripes.  They just get too fat and happy, like the 
insurance vultures.

NB: was in Japan for three of the days of my diary week, dutifully wrote 
76.1 MHz, Hokodate, Hokkaido in the frequency column, wonder what they 
made of that... :)

-- 
Peter Moncure, VP RadioSoft
706.754.2725 -2745 FAX
PMoncure at RadioSoft.com
...a Customer Friendly Company