Rethinking Television Audience Measures: An Exploration into the Construct of Audience Connectedness

Seeking to extend the scope of current audience measurement methods, this paper qualitatively investigates audiences' relationships with television programs. A content analysis of viewers' discourse from focus groups, Internet "fan forums" and five phenomenological interviews suggests a construct we label "connectedness." Transcending involvement, audience connectedness defines intense relationships between the audience and a television program that extend beyond the television watching experience into individuals' personal and social lives. Highly connected audiences were found to be more susceptible to the consumption images presented in television programs, hence illustrating the moderating effect of connectedness on television influence. Implications for audience measurement methods and marketing efforts are discussed.