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The Evolution of Viewer Engagement: How Changed

A Thesis

Submitted to the Faculty

of

Drexel University

by

Kiara M. Shepherd

in partial fulfillment of the

requirements for the degree

of

Master of Science

June 2014

ii

Copyright 2014

Kiara M. Shepherd. All Rights Reserved.

iii

DEDICATION

I dedicate this to my mother, Andrea Shepherd, who has always been my biggest supporter and my family who has been my backbone throughout this entire process. They believed in me even when I stopped believing in myself. I also dedicate this to every person who lent an ear when I had a new a idea and who, simply by listening, helped me see a light at the end of a very long tunnel.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Many thanks go to my friends, and classmates, for all of their advice and kind, encouraging words. I will sincerely miss our Thursday night dinners.

Thank you for helping me see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Heather Foster: Thank you so very much for your interest in my topic long before I knew what it was. Thank you for helping me work through all of my ideas, the many email threads, Skype conversations, and meetings. This process would have been much harder without your help.

The View: Thank you for not only being a group I could discuss my thesis with, but for also being my friends and helping me see that I could a full body of work no mater how much I complained about it.

Albert Tedesco: Thank you for teaching me lessons far beyond the classroom that I will take with me and apply to my every day life.

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LIST OF TABLES

Programs, Networks, Episode Titles, Airdate, Series Recurring 39

Applications, , and PC use of social media by minutes 43

Types of Social Media and Responses 45

Forms of Social Media Used While Watching Television 46

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LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

President Barack Obama’s feed 7

Social Media Timeline 9

Investigation Discovery ‘Addict’ Form 16

Scandal Season 2 ABC Article 26

Gossip Girl: Social Climbing’s Application 30

Technology Adoption Curve 34

Hashtag usage by cast members 42

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ABSTRACT

The Evolution of Viewer Engagement: How Social Media Changed Television

Kiara M. Shepherd

This study examines the evolution of content and viewer engagement from the late 1990s to the present. The study is also used to gauge how much social media may have affected the manner in which people view television.

Social media as a whole have been able to create a shift in the way that television is discussed. Through social media, the water cooler has become largely digital and instantaneous. Viewers no longer have to wait until the following day to discuss programs with their friends or co-workers. Viewers now have the option of participating in the ongoing conversations taking place in the digital universe.

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Table of Contents DEDICATION ...... iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS...... iv LIST OF TABLES ...... v LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS ...... vi ABSTRACT ...... vii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ...... 1 Smarter Television ...... 5 A Brief History of Social Media ...... 10 Engagement and Interaction ...... 16 Social Media Measurement Firms ...... 19 CHAPTER 2: REVIEW OF LITERATURE ...... 22 The Social Media Revolution ...... 29 Social Media and Television Management ...... 36 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY ...... 42 Purpose and Research Questions ...... 42 Scandal, The Walking Dead, and Pretty Little Liars ...... 47 Nielsen: State of the Media ...... 51 CHAPTER 4: RESULTS ...... 53 Summary ...... 56 Conclusion ...... 63 References ...... 65 APPENDIX ...... 71

1

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

Television has changed significantly since its inception many ago.

The content available for viewers has changed for several reasons over the years.

In the very beginning of television and the broadcast system, there were only three channels to choose from appropriately called the “Big Three” (Auletta,

1991). The Big Three consisted of the American Corporation (ABC),

Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS), and National Broadcasting Corporation

(NBC). For approximately 30 years, the Big Three television networks dominated

American television. Many years later, in late 1986, FOX established itself as the fourth major network (Auletta, 1991). As of 2013, several cable and satellite channels have carved out places for themselves in the broadcast market. The

CW, MyNetworkTV, , , TNT, and AMC amongst others have cut the “Big Four’s” (ABC, CBS, FOX, and NBC) market share considerably

(p. 1). The proliferation of premium cable packages and instant online streaming services has impacted the content available for consumption. Viewership has changed from a broad, open net programming with broadcast television to niche programming with cable and satellite networks.

Home Box Office (HBO) is America’s oldest and longest continuously operating pay service having been launched in 1972. HBO’s prominence began in

1975 when the network aired the September 30th boxing match between

Muhammad Ali and Joe Fraizer called the “Thrilla in Manila” (Mesce, 2013, para.

2 12). HBO was only offered in a few cities between 1972 and 1980 when it became available in all 50 U.S. states (para. 13). Cable has largely been able to thrive because its niche programming. When he published his 1992 book chronicling the decline of ABC, CBS, and NBC in the 1980s, author Ken Auletta noted “the average home, which had seven channels to choose from in 1976, now has thirty- three” (p 3, para. 3). A Nielsen report released in 2008 revealed that the average number of channels in the U.S. home came in at 118.6 channels (Nielsen, 2008).

Viewers were now able to find programming to fit their specific interests. But these programs were to be seen in their homes on the same time grid used by broadcast networks. Since 1975 many cable networks have been launched including for children, MTV for music , and other premium movie channels such as , Showtime, and . Together cable and broadcast networks flourished sharing the market. Until Digital

Recorders (DVRs) became popular and allowed time shifting- a process by which viewers could see a program when they wanted without commercial interruption (Rouse, 2005).

In 1997, was founded. Similar to industry mammoth Blockbuster,

Netflix provided members with movie rentals. But unlike Blockbuster, Netflix allowed members to rent titles without the threat of outrageous late charges

(O’Brien, 2002, para. 1). A decade later, Netflix began to offer video-on-demand or live streaming (Arango and Carr, 2010). Live streaming is a service that allows users to watch content over the Internet. Netflix offered users as well as

3 television programs. and Hulu also began offering live streaming services after Netflix’ business model gained popularity (Arango and Carr).

Netflix threatened the old television model by offering films and television programming for a fraction of a cable subscription cost. As of 2014, Netflix’s subscription cost users $7.99 (Arango and Carr, para. 3). As of 2012, 7% of cable subscribers cancelled their services (Ericsson). Individuals who cancel their cable subscriptions in favor of less expensive alternatives are called cord cutters

(Rouse, 2013). Cord cutters are more likely to be individuals who enjoy viewing. According to Mashable’s Christine Warren, second screen viewing is the act of “watching or engaging with content on one device (typically a television set), additional contextual information and content can be displayed on a companion device such as a tablet, or computer screen” (2013, para. 2). The water cooler turned digital due in large part to the Internet’s rapid growth and the rise of social media’s popularity. On average, people spent 171.8 million minutes on social media in 2012 (Nielsen, 2012, p. 5).

As of 2012, 62% of television viewers engage in social media while watching television (Bergman, para 1). It was almost a 25% percent increase from

2011. With the addition of and computers in homes, researchers have found that “people are eagerly looking for an easy-to-use, aggregated service that can bring everything together” according to Ericsson’s Niklas Ronnblom.

At its inception television viewing was intended to be a passive medium where viewers were meant to accept what they were seeing without any need for

4 additional information. Since the early days of television into its , which scholars believe to have been from the late 1940s to the early 1960s, the medium has progressively adapted to fulfill the needs of each generation.

Hollywood critics and directors have been calling the latest round of television programming the second Golden Age of television. Beginning with HBO’s The

Sopranos to Showtime’s Ray Donovan and Netflix’ House of Cards. And everything in between that has been gritty or driven by the anti-hero from 1997 to the present. According to Mark Lawson of The Guardian explains that though historically cinema has considered itself superior to television, a significant number of “Hollywood filmmakers- including David Lynch, Steven Spielberg and Oliver Stone- have moved to the junior medium for mini-series or documentaries” (2013, para 1). Director of critically acclaimed films Erin

Brockovich and Traffic, Steven Soderbergh was one of the most recent directors to comment on this new Golden Age. At the Cannes Festival, Soderbergh explains, “TV has really taken control of the conversation that used to be the reserve of movies. It’s sort of a second golden age of television, which is great for the viewers…if you like your to go narrow and deep, TV is exciting”

(Lawson, para. 1). And based on television’s programming over the past decade and a half, this is quite true.

American television’s past will forever be remembered for classic programming such as and along with the Burns and

Allen Show and Texaco Star Theater with . They were pioneers in the

5 television industry. Though known for being exceptional television, scholars have noted that these types of programming did not require a great deal of foreknowledge to understand the dialogue or plotline. The audience depended heavily on being told the joke through the dialogue pertaining specifically to that scene or episode (Johnson, 2005). Quite the opposite of newer programs where and producers relied on the audience being engaged for several episodes before a punch line revealed itself. Television has shifted significantly to sharper, more challenging programs. Recently, programs require viewers to think more in order to fill in the blanks and recall information given to them directly or indirectly in previous episodes or seasons in some cases, to fully enjoy the material (Johnson, 2005). The television production and management models have changed slightly due to these shifts in programming. With this shift, the question for researchers becomes: (1) how has social media enabled information to be shared about these smarter programs requiring more from their viewers?;

(2)has it enabled a shift at all?; and (3) was social media the catalyst for this change? Perhaps television was moving toward more compelling programming on its own without social media’s assistance.

Smarter Television Television’s shift can be traced through the programming offered from the late 1990s to the early . With the popularity of programs, cult followings developed prior to the proliferation of social media as we have come to know and understand it today. Edward Jay Epstein, an American investigative

6 journalist, explains that HBO’s rise as a powerhouse in because their programming was “designed to appeal to the head of the house.

Here it had several advantages over Hollywood. It did not have to restrict edgier content to get films approved by a ratings board (there is no censorship of Pay-

TV). As a result, HBO and the two other pay-channels, Showtime and , were able to create sophisticated character-driven series such as The Wire, Sex and the

City, , and The Sopranos. As this only succeeded in retaining subscribers and also achieved critical acclaim, -supported cable and over-the-air network had little choice but to follow suit to avoid losing market share. The result of this competitive race to the top is the elevation of television”

(Thompson, 2013, para. 6). HBO paved the way for programming such as AMC’s

The Walking Dead, , and Breaking Bad.

The shift of , television consumption that is enhanced through the usages of social media while watching a program, took place gradually culminating in the explosions the entertainment and digital technology industries witnessed around 2009. The term social media has been widely attributed to co-founder and CEO of GuideWire Group, a technology service firm that focuses on early- technology ventures, Chris Shipley. She was also largely responsible for the first social media conference in 2005 called BlogOn

(Israel, 2009, p. 19). In its early stages social media was thought of as an extension of a web 2.0. Web 2.0 is the second generation of web interactions where users could collaborate and share information online. In simpler terms, web 2.0 was

7 the move from HTML to more dynamic web designs (O’Reilly, 2005). According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the phrase social media is a noun that can be defined as “ and applications that enable users to create and share content or to participate in social networking.” In other words, social networking can be viewed as a manner in which users, individuals and corporations, can exchange information about themselves, the services one may offer, and/or currents events that may be happening with either. In a less formal or business sense, social media is an opportunity for people to recreationally communicate with others who have similar interests or a forum that allows questions to be answered regarding a specific topic not limited to entertainment. Social media connects one user to several hundred, sometimes thousands or more users, at a single time. Using social media while being engaged, with a specific television program, connects users to millions of fans who share a similar interest in the program, subject matter or actors, producers and directors involved with a

8 project.

Fig 1.1: President Barack Obama’s Twitter feed

For example, President Barack Obama has more than 42.5 million followers on

Twitter. When the President or a member of his staff, sends out a tweet all 42.5 million following him will see that tweet. Those who follow him and have seen that tweet now have the option of retweeting (reposting) that tweet. The tweet that was initially seen by 42.5 million now has the potential to be seen on the feeds of millions more.

Studies have found that viewers who interact with social media in one form or another are more actively engaged in the viewing process (McClellan).

This seems logical as it is far more difficult to participate in the discussion

9 without a certain level of engagement involved. One must know the subject matter in order to offer a meaningful opinion to people who are more avid participants. Engagement seems inevitable. Every program requires differing levels of attention from its audience. Ericsson Consumer Labs acknowledges that some individuals watch television because it is “easy background and relaxation viewing- hassle-free entertainment” and does not require decision making, which differs greatly from Scandal, The Walking Dead, and Mad Men viewers based on their social media activity. But research has shown that this shift from passive to active viewing is taking place primarily within Generation Y also known as the Millennials’ generation. The generation has been characterized by its unlimited access to information views the world as constantly being a 24/7, fast paced environment with immediate gratification. This generation also prefers a digital atmosphere due to their upbringing. The following generation, known as the boomlets or Generation Z, does not know a world without a digital presence making their transition much easier to accept. It also leaves them to expect more. As television shifts, who do executives have in mind when making decisions? How do advertisers reach an audience that does not watch television as a stationary fixture, but conversely as something that should have the functionality to move with them? This makes way to the desirability and the purchasing of tablets and cell phones or mobile devices. The devices have become a convenient tool that allows for this type of viewership. They have also propelled any time anywhere viewership demands.

10 A Brief History of Social Media

Fig 1.2: Social Media Timeline (Nelson, K. 2012)

Though the term social media was coined in 2004, the basic fundamental aspects of social media have been in existence for several decades. Bulletin Board

Systems have been in use since the late 1970s well into the present year.

(O’Reilly, 2005). Social media continued to evolve from one application to the next including the applications we use currently.

Bulletin Board System (BBS) was created in 1978 and used to exchange data. However, as the Internet used a phone’s connection in its earliest days to dial to a signal, long distance calling rates applied when accessing forums from other states or counties. This prompted users to associate with other locals creating local-only groups that led to in-person gatherings. CompuServe was a business-oriented mainframe that began in the 1970s as well and expanded to a public domain in the late 1980s. The domain became incredibly popular during its prime and it paved the way for modern iterations that followed (Chapman,

11 2009). Many years later, in 1994, Geocities was created and allowed users to create and customize personal web pages. The pages were sorted into ‘cities’ based on their subject matter. These web pages were created for different purposes including sharing information about television programs and films that had acquired a following. The pool of individuals participating in such activity was considerably smaller than what can be seen today due largely to accessibility and interest.

Later, America Online (AOL), launched AOL Instant Messenger and

SixDegrees.com launched around the same time offering similar services. These sites afforded their users the ability to chat with friends and strangers as well as create a profile that others could view. AOL Instant Messenger could very well be the closest relative to the social media platforms that are popular today including Twitter and Facebook (Chapman, 2009). AOL and SixDegrees.com can be viewed as social media’s infancy as many changes and advances have been made since 1997. Over the next several years, many websites were created with the sole purpose of connecting people who might have otherwise touch with one another. These sites, however, were niche and made with a specific type of audience in mind. These niche sites included Muxlim.com, AsianAvenue.com,

MiGente.com, and BlackPlanet.com to fulfill the needs to the Muslim, Asian,

Latino, and African-American communities, respectively (Chapman, 2009, para

27).

12 The launching of in 2002 marked the beginning of rapid growth in social media as well as the movement toward instant accessibility and gratification. Similar to SixDegrees, Friendster provided a “Circle of Friends” where the six degrees of separation phenomena was utilized to show the connection between two individuals (Goble, 2012, para. 12). While Friendster lost its popularity in North America, it remains very popular in Asia and the

Philippines. Just a year later, LinkedIn launched with a conscious effort to be more serious about its social networking capabilities than its peers. It began as a meant specifically for the networking of businesspeople. More than a decade later, LinkedIn remains the social networking site that serves as a resource for professional connections.

eUniverse employees with Friendster accounts who the potential of the social network launched MySpace, synonymous with co-founder Tom

Anderson who was every user’s first friend, in 2003. They took the best aspects of Friendster and created that expanded upon then. Ten days later,

MySpace, in its earliest stages, was created. MySpace gained popularity quickly as it was a , hipper version of Friendster. It appealed to the key demographic of young adults by including “music, music videos, and a funky, fun-filled environment amongst its features (Goble, para. 16). In July 2006,

Experian’s Hitwise announced, “MySpace had surpassed Yahoo! Mail as the most visited domain on the Internet for US Internet Users” (Tancer, 2011).

MySpace remained the competitor to beat until Facebook launched in 2006.

13 Facebook, formally The Facebook, launched in 2004 an exclusive, Harvard-only social network before expanding two years later to the general public in 2006.

When it opened to the general public, Facebook already had major investors and had generated a large buzz; making it an immediate hit amongst the demographic MySpace had so quickly gained. It initially received praise for its

“honesty and openness” (Goble, para. 17). It has also enjoyed the title of alpha from the launch of its 2007 that allowed third party developers to create applications that were, and still are, compatible with

Facebook. In 2008, Facebook became the most popular social networking site surpassing both MySpace and Friendster (Aramdilla, para. 17).

Twitter was launched in 2006 and quickly became the precedent for real time updates and the applications that allowed for real time updates. Twitter became popular during the 2007 South by Southwest Conference where tweets tripled jumping from 20,000 per day to 60,000 per day. Twitter has allowed individuals to connect with, or follow, their favorite , brands, and stores by offering them the opportunity to share their random or very marketable thoughts with those who follow them. It also allows friends to keep tabs on one another through their condensed, Short Message Service (SMS) messages. British researchers Mark Lochrie and Paul Coulton have rightly described Twitter as having “effectively become an alternative to text message. Twitter also experienced the similar successful results as Facebook when they allowed third- party developers to create applications that were compatible with their

14 Application Programming Interface (API). Twitter real-time updates have become the accepted norm in social networking. The rapid accessibility that

Twitter offers is one of its more popular features.

Tumblr, founded in 2007, differs significantly from the aforementioned social networks. With its features including photos, videos, text, audio, links, and conversations all appearing in real-time, is a hybrid of life streaming and micro blogging. Tumblr boasts a fairly user-friendly interface the makes actual usage less stressful for the less technologically savvy user (Chapman, para. 63). It capitalized on offering several different features often exclusively on one site or another and consolidating them into one easy to use package. Tumblr also allows users the option of linking their Tumblr accounts to other social networks including Twitter and Facebook.

Similar to Twitter, Facebook, and Tumblr, photo and video-sharing application, has proven itself a contender for most popular in social media. Instagram was launched in 2010 for the purpose sharing videos initially.

Users were given the option to post the photos and videos they captured on several different networks including Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and Flickr. In

2012, Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced on Facebook that the company was acquiring Instagram for $1 billion (Stern, 2012). Ironically,

Instagram is the fastest growing social network surpassing Twitter, Facebook, and combined. In 2013 reports showed the company grew 23%

(Knibbs, 2014). Almost three years after its October 2010 launch, Instagram

15 announced it reached over 150 million active users on September 9, 2013 (Rusli,

2013).

Founded in March 2010, Pinterest became popular because it allowed users to save images they found amusing and categorize them onto boards.

Pinterest runs on the idea that the user will “pin” images to their respective boards. Users are also encouraged to follow boards of interest. According to a study conducted by RJMetrics, the most popular boards on Pinterest include home, arts and crafts, style/fashion, food, and inspiration/education (Moore,

2012). More than 50% of the pinboards fall into those five categories. The study also revealed that user utilized Pinterest as a product recommender, searching for boards titled “Products I Love,” which is the third most popular board name.

Most recently, in terms of social media, Google launched Google+ (G+) in

2011. Not necessarily a full-featured networking site, according to Goble, G+ has carved a niche for itself by offering a social layer for Google’s users overall experience. Its most popular feature has been its “hangout” feature that allows users to enter live video chats with other friends online. Within four short weeks, G+ garnered 25 million unique visitors. As of June 2012, G+ announced it had approximately 250 million active users (Goble, para 21). This illustrates the constant desire to remain on the cutting edge of technological advances in the realm of social media.

16 Engagement and Interaction In terms of the shift prompted by social media, viewer engagement has changed tremendously. Where television and film were initially conceptualized as passive forms of entertainment, they have now reached an unprecedented, unexpected level of participation. NBC audience measurement executive Paul

Klein properly identified an individual’s desire to consume television regardless of what aired as least objectionable programming. Programs that thrived during this era were formulaic, cliché, predictable, and monotonous. Least objectionable programming was the theory that viewers did not turn on their television sets to watch their favorite programming but what was available to them. Least objectionable programming simply meant providing the consumer with material he or she did not find offensive enough to search for entertainment on a competing channel. As a result, the least objectionable programming theory

“assumes that viewers select whatever is "least objectionable" from whatever happens to be on TV, assumes that viewing patterns are the result of habit, convenience, and socialization” (weisenbacher.com). Programming directors followed this model.

This notion has been abandoned somewhat. Television executives are now fully aware that viewers will bounce around from channel to channel until finding something of interest or record a program with the intention to watch it without commercial interruption. Executives are now trying to discover new ways to appeal to this younger key demographic.

17 In the past viewers could theoretically speak to their television sets. They could muse their predictions and desires aloud. They could also call a friend, someone not too far away who enjoyed the program as well- long distance calling still applied, to voice their satisfaction, disappointment, and/or indifference. But this yielded very little results with almost no impact on the program at all. Viewers could not enter the diegetic world (the realm in which the characters of a program or film exist) and make changes to as they saw fit.

Television was also a shared experience with the family. Everyone watched the same program because, more often than not, a family only owned one television set. Conversely, in the present, viewers have the option of speaking to their televisions, or in some cases their phones, tablets, laptops, and desktops, while musing their predictions and desires aloud with the expectation of being heard.

Television has moved to an individualized experience where families own more than one means of viewing a program. However, television is still not an isolated experience.

American author, media scholar, and professor Henry Jenkins stated “few watch television in total silence and isolation” in his 2006 book entitled

Convergence Culture when examining the manner in which television is consumed today. The water cooler has gone digital. Online forums, social networks, offer an opportunity for participants to share their knowledge and opinions on any topic available to them. They create a potluck of ideas, analyses, and predictions that can be shared, debated, or added to at anytime.

18 Out of this engagement comes a social media interaction. Social media interactions are the product of users participating in ongoing conversations taking place at the digital water cooler. In fact, Investigation Discovery (ID) owned by Discovery Communications encourages viewers to “join the conversation” across their series of social platforms. There are also incentives for joining said conversation. The ID Addict of the Week is selected and a sort promotional commercial airs with the individual’s Twitter handle and picture. In order to qualify, one must fill out an application and submit it to .

Fig 1.3: Investigation Discovery ‘Addict’ Form www.investigationdiscovery.com/adiict-of-the-day.htm

These types of incentives encourage viewers to be an active participant in what is taking place on their televisions.

19 Interactions go beyond the conversations encouraged by a network. The conversations between fans of a program are another form of interaction. The interactions taking place between fans of a program on Twitter through hashtags and/or on a program’s official Facebook page are the crux of social media’s impact on television viewing. These interactions have essentially become the digital water cooler. To completely discredit the water cooler as a dead American pastime would be extreme as individuals continue to partake in the quintessential form of television analysis. However, the water cooler is steadily being moved from one’s office to one’s home specifically the mobile device of choice.

Quite the opposite of social media in their earliest form, social media today connect individuals from different counties, states, countries, and continents without the constant worry of long distance phone charges. As the social media networks and platforms evolved the Internet evolved as well. Now, it is far more likely from fans of a program to have cyber-friends from several places across the world. If social media have changed television viewing and influences the manner in which television is consumed, how have television managers adapted to these developments?

Social Media Measurement Firms have been a constant in television ratings for decades as it was the largest measurement service. Though flawed Nielsen’s ratings relied heavily on a sample of the market as well as the participants’ truthful recording

20 of their television habits; Nielsen remained the service of choice when negotiating quotes for advertisement spots. John Herman of Splitsider explains

“networks, advertisers, and Nielsen itself all know and acknowledge that the ratings reported and transacted with don’t reflect a show’s full audience” (2011, para 21). ’ media reporter Brian Stelter also balked “at the numbers for [President] Obama’s inauguration, which claimed just 37.8 million people watched- fewer than watched [President] Reagan’s three decades ago

(para 8). Until early 2000s, Nielsen did not include time shifted viewing in the total number of people watching (Stelter, 2008). Nielsen recently announced its plans to include social media results in the total number of viewers watching

(Nielsen, 2012).

Bluefin Labs is a Massachusetts based analytics company that tracks and gauges television programs and advertisements favorability through social media networks including Facebook and Twitter as well as blogs. Bluefin Labs is specifically interested in measuring the engagement of viewers as it has proven a complex and costly setback for the television and marketing industries to solve

(Marich, 2008).

The question remains: how are television network executives adapting to the change in viewing habits in the key 18-34 age demographic? As this demographic is important to advertisers, programming is time shifted regularly to fit into the daily lives of the Millennials sparking the change. Are executives

21 interested in the way social media have changing the landscape of viewer engagement?

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CHAPTER 2: REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Caryn James of The New York Times poignantly stated in an October 2000 article, “Anyone who does not watch television cannot possibly understand

American culture. Studies have shown that time shifting has effected advertisements and the advertising/marketing industry. Television advertisers have seen their revenues fall due to an increase in (DVR) and other secondary device usage according to a 2011 study. A recent study conducted by Mark Lochrie and Paul Coulton of Lancaster University designed to explore the effect of social media on programs such as The X

Factor and similar competition programs with live voting shows. The study revealed that mobile devices are now included in the viewing experience for

Generations Y and Z (Coulton, 2012 para 3). These types of time shifted viewing experiences have proven to be detrimental to the long-standing television business model where audience measurements determined the price for advertisement spots. As more people, particularly those in the 18-34 age demographic, enjoy the luxury of time shifted television, networks are unable to collect an accurate Nielsen calculation of who sees the commercials advertisers are paying to appear during specific programs (Herman, 2011). The value of television commercials has decreased in recent years due to the increased interest in watching programs sans commercials (Blodget, 2012). Blodget provides readers with examples as to why this occurring in television. He traces the

23 change that has happened in the average American household over the past five years. He explains with the exception of live sporting events the audience rarely watches “television shows when they are broadcast;” the audience will rarely

“watch shows with ads, even on a DVR;” the audience consumes television and film “but always on demand and almost never with ads;” and finally the audience receives “news from the Internet” rather than directly from television news broadcasts (2012, para. 15). Because of the shift from traditional viewing methods, the audience is no longer sitting through commercials, though they are watching the program. Networks are finding it more and more difficult to assure advertisers that their commercials are being viewed thus lessening their value.

Though it may seem that individuals are becoming less and less interested in what appears on their screens, the very opposite has been proven to be true.

Individuals may seem submerged in the digital community with no knowledge of what is occurring on television, but Media Daily News’ McClellan reported “interacting with social media while watching TV drives a 9% increase in program engagement. Viewers accessed social media an average 4 times during a half-hour program, for a cumulative 26% boost in program engagement” as of April 2013. Wausau Paper Corporation’s, a British multinational public relations and advertising company, MEC, Australian television network Seven and market research firm Neuro-Insight found that social media interactions serve as “reset moments” where viewers return to the screen with a higher engagement level. Researchers used neuroscience to

24 measure responses while participants watched television and interacted with social media. In his 2005 examination of American pop culture media scholar and professor, Steven Johnson, compared interactive games to television. He writes,

“Interactive games require more decision-making than passive forms like television or film” (p. 62). His statement further reiterates the belief that television was not initially meant to be engaging or interactive. This thought is the opposite of what studies have proven as of 2013 better reflecting the state of television viewing today. The shift took place as the audience began to ask questions and accept more complex linear storylines that required their attentiveness throughout the series. The audience is expected to come into the next episode with foreknowledge from previous episodes. Johnson then goes on to assert “popular television shows have increased the cognitive work they demand from their audience, exercising the mind” quite differently than what had been presented in the previous 30 years of television (p. 63).

In the another study used to explore the effects of social media on television viewing by Lochrie and Coulton, researchers noted there was a “direct and immediate increase of viewer engagement from two to ten times more the amount of mentions, follows, and hashtags whilst the show airs” (2011, para. 4).

For example, the 2010 Grammy Awards noticed a 35% increase from the 2009 broadcast (Lochrie and Coulton, 2012, para. 4). One of the many suggested reasons for this large increase was the integration of social media. Programs such as , , and saw viewers more likely to

25 tweet during the commercial breaks of a performance episode the exact opposite of their behavior during the following results episode where viewers were more apt to tweet as the results were being revealed (para. 15).

Television, in theory, may be more passive than other forms of media, but there are varying degrees of passivity. Television’s passivity rested in the fact that the audience could not directly affect anything during the course of an episode. Whereas interactive games require action from the participants in order to propel the game forward. Some narratives require viewers to do work to make sense of them while others allow viewers to settle onto the couch and zone out

(Johnson, 2005). The narratives that require their viewers to fill in crucial elements take complexity to a more demanding level. Johnson further explains the state of current popular programming as having “increased the cognitive work they demand from their audience, exercising the mind” quite differently that what had been presented in the previous 30 years (p. 62). Viewers are asked to analyze as well. This is the difference between intelligent shows, and shows that force one to be intelligent. The Mary Tyler Moore Show, , and

Frasier are viewed as quality programming the intelligence arrives fully formed in the words and actions of the characters onscreen (p. 63-64). Programs with a more demanding and complex storyline require viewers to remain abreast on what is happening in that diegetic world. They cater to the desires of the viewers who discuss them. Johnson theorizes that the simplest form of measuring a program’s “complexity is to consider how much external information the viewer

26 must draw upon to ‘get’ the jokes in their entirety” (p. 84). Episodes of complex comedies or dramas will contain material that will only make sense once viewers to provide the additional information given to them previously. This information can be given to them earlier in the episode or season. It is the viewer’s responsibility to fill in the blank.

With this shift to more intelligent, complex television has come the desire to discuss and analyze it with likeminded individuals who are interested in the same of television. was an instant hit on television when it premiered more than a decade ago in in 1997 after being developed in the . It saw equal success in the United States when it premiered three years later in 2000 on CBS. The program called for a group of approximately twenty contestants, separated into two tribes, to live in a tropical setting without luxury items. Individuals were expected to create their own shelter, set up camp, and provide food in the wilderness while television cameras recorded their ordeal (Probst, 2009). It has survived 28 seasons on CBS. TIME magazine included the program in its “All-Time 100 Top Shows” (Poniewozik,

2007). This kind of excitement and interest caused a to form around the program. Avid fans of the program made it their duty to identify the contestants in the upcoming season, its location, and the winner of the season.

Jenkins calls Survivor “television for the Internet age- designed to be discussed, dissected, debated, predicted, and critiqued” (p. 25). And it was. Jenkins goes on to explain that fans went through a great deal of effort to bring “spoilers” to

27 the community that followed the program. Spoilers are messages that reveal important plot points or information before the episode can air thus spoiling the suspense or surprise producers intend for viewers to experience. A message board, or BBS, where likeminded individuals gathered to discuss the program and to dissect and analyze the clues they could gather Mark

Burnett’s carefully selected teasers.

One common thought is the idea that the water cooler has gone digital.

Our physical connection to objects is rapidly diminishing as humankind becomes more and more reliant on digital technology. Jenkins offers an interesting explanation for this change. He says,” The age of media convergence enables communal, rather than individualistic, modes of reception. Not every media consumer interacts within the yet; some simply discuss what they see with their friends, family members, and workmates” (p. 26). One may or may not discuss one’s analysis of a program or reaction to a results show with a friend, coworker, or family member in person, but it is highly likely that said individual will share his or her thoughts through a tweet in 140 characters or less. Fulfilling the belief that Twitter’s tweets have taken the place of SMS messaging (text messaging) which it was modeled after. French philosopher, cultural theorist, and media scholar Pierre Levy expressed the belief that “no one knows everything, everyone knows something, all knowledge resides in humanity” (Levy, 1999). It is the belief that people harness individual expertise toward a shared goal. This is the belief that unifies fan forums and message

28 boards. Individually, a person is less likely to have all of the answers to every question, to know all of the intricate details of any one object, but collectively individuals can share their knowledge on a topic to create a fuller, richer portrait on the topic.

Ericsson Consumer Lab released an insight summary report in the of 2012 analyzing the habits of consumers as they have evolved. The study found that social television is on the rise. Sixty-two percent of consumers use social media while watching television up 18% from 2011. Consumers are interested in television anytime, anyplace television where they can watch video- on-demand from several different devices other than their televisions. The study reports “a growing number of households instead use a large main TV supplemented by a number of mobile devices that provide access to services from all over the home” (p. 5). At this time, consumers constantly wrestle with scheduled on-demand viewing versus impulse on-demand viewing. Linear television consumption seems less and less appealing to individuals constantly on the go. However, all consumers are not cutting traditional subscriptions.

Only 7% of packages were cancelled in 2011. This figure does not take into account packages that were cancelled in 2012 and 2013. Mark Glaser of PBS’

MediaShift reported that 4.5% of homes in the United States had only broadcast

TV, up almost 23% from the year before (2013, para. 4).

The analysis listed eight drivers for the new habit of using social media while watching television: (1) “not watching alone;” (2) “gaining a community

29 feeling” the ability to connect with friends and family; (3) “validating self against public sample;” (4) “curiosity of opinions of others;” (5) “seeking additional information;” (6) wanting to influence or interact with content;” (7) gratification of being acknowledged by others;” and (8) “the need to further analyze and discuss” (p.5). These drivers apply to the 33% of Twitter users tweeting actively about television related content or the 44% and 39% of tablet and smartphone users, respectively, in the United States (Nielsen).

The Social Media Revolution Social media have revolutionized the manner in which people view television. An entire conversation regarding a popular television program can be shared with hundreds of friends in the stroke of just a few keys. Networks have set their sights on capitalizing on this newfound media outlet. As people are less likely to watch commercials, with much thanks to time shifting devices, networks and advertisers have found another way to target viewers. Through social media, networks can track internally official hashtags related, created for the purpose of tracking, directly to the program. Official hashtags allow for social media strategists to compile a complete list of tweets regarding that specific program. It becomes easier to measure the audience based on these short keywords. For example, Scandal has been dubbed ABC’s most watched social program. The program was able to generate a social media buzz as a midseason series with its original taking place over the course of seven weeks in spring

30 2012. Its popularity made it a front-runner for a full season renewal and within weeks Scandal managed to capitalize on the social media frenzy. ABC helped create that social media buzz by catering to the needs of their target audience.

ABC created a Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest all dedicated to Scandal. Viewers were also encouraged to follow the program’s cast on Twitter for the season 2 premiere for what ABC called a “live tweet event” (Dove, 2012). The

#AskScandal and #Scandal appear on the screen during airing of an episode.

And while these tactics have proven fruitful, strategists are still faced with the task of collecting data regarding viewer-generated hashtags. The hashtags that relate to a specific moment or scene that goes viral and become quite popular.

31 Figure 2.1: Scandal Season 2 ABC Article

Scandal expertly uses social media to push the program. Networks began suggesting that cast members of popular programs tweets. These tweets were formulaic and pre-approved by executive and sent at selected times before the program aired. Scandal appealed to the connected generation’s tastes and did so well. Not only are members accessible on Thursday evenings when the show airs “live tweeting” during the hour long time block, they also tweet pictures of behind the scenes moments. Fans of the program can easily see to camaraderie amongst the cast and crew and feels a different connection to those tweets. In

Brett Gold’s 2014 article entitled “How Social Media Helped Save ABC’s

‘Scandal’,” he appropriately accounts its premiere season as a mid season replacement airing in April at the end of September to May time season. These shows can easily go undetected as programs needing to be aired to fulfill contractual obligations. And the show initially saw respectable numbers before ending abruptly on a cliffhanger. ABC renewed its for an additional 13 episodes for its September 2012 season. During the summer, while most network programming is on break, fans of the program took to social media to share the gem they found at the end of the season. Gold adds, “Scandal's creator and executive producer Shonda Rhimes also regularly engaged with the series' fans

(known as "Gladiators") and gave them behind-the-scenes tidbits that keep the conversation going online. Combined these tactics make the fans feel like they are more involved and have an active role” (para. 7). It was also revealed that

32 the cast members are friend off-screen as well and regularly watch the show together, tweeting to their fans as the episode unfolds. These actions make viewer feel more connected and invested in the happenings of the program.

Scandal also capitalizes on the feeling of must tweet television. It is incredibly easy and highly convenient to record programs and watch them at a later time than sit through a series of commercials that stand between a viewer seeing the next series of scenes. Very few programs are safe from time shifting; sporting events and the news are more likely to be immune because the viewer wants the information as it is happening rather than at a later date. Monday’s story will be old, repetitive, and redundant on Wednesday if it is time-shifted and watched at a later date. Scandal has been able to align itself with such programming due mainly to its social media buzz. One cannot avoid seeing Scandal related tweets and Facebook posts on Thursday evenings. There are consequences to time-shifting a program with a similar following. Spoilers on social media generally serve as a deterrent to time shifting according to Gold.

MEC’s study with Nuero-Insights and Seven network asserted that appointment television was on the rise due in part to social media. Scandal generated 2,200 tweets per minute or 132,000 tweets in an hour (Hilton, 2013).

Like Scandal, Gossip Girl and Veronica Mars enjoyed heightened renewal through social media. The CW’s Gossip Girl premiered in September 2007 to high expectations and great anticipation. The series was based on a series of novels written by Cecily von Ziegesar of the same name. Gossip Girl revolves around

33 the lives of privileged young adults living on Manhattan’s Upper East Side.

When the series began, it had an existing fan base familiar with the storyline and interested in seeing how their beloved novels were translated onto the television screen. Gossip Girl is told through the lens of an anonymous blogger named

“Gossip Girl” who reports on the lives of ’s elite. Critics of the program have called Gossip Girl a social media pioneer (Fox, 2012). It was a direct representation of the connected generation (para. 2). The program premiered two years before the proliferation of social media, but “Gossip Girl, as a show, was a pioneer in its use of mobile” (para. 8). Fox explains, “From the first episode, which premiered September 19, 2007, it was clear the characters' lives could change with one text message” (para. 3). As social media advanced and adopted new networks, Gossip Girl relied heavily on their viewers’ connectedness to the web. Fans of the program knew the power of the Internet.

They understood that friendships could be forged or broken by a single blog post. Fox contends, “our generation thrives on Facebook likes, receives validation from blog hits and is turned on by retweets,” which speaks directly to the world that Gossip Girl’s characters live in (para. 12).

Riding on the high secured by Gossip Girl’s connection to the Internet and the burgeoning world of social media, Gossip Girl: Social Climbing was launched in January 2011 on Facebook. Gossip Girl: Social Climbing’s launched on January

24, 2011. Tim Wasserman points to Gossip Girl’s fan base for the reason it serves as a prime candidate for a social media based game. Wasserman explains “the

34 idea of offering a social media extension to a TV property comes as TV producers embrace the idea that a show can live in multiple media formats. The game also serves as marketing for the show via Facebook” (para. 3). The game allows players to become a part of their favorite group of New York City’s elite. Users complete a brief survey before the anonymous Gossip Girl provides them with a nickname. Users are then given a series of missions to climb New York’s social ladder by attending club openings, fashion shows, and sample sales (para. 2).

The game closed on Friday, June 29, 2012 at 10am Eastern Standard Time according to the game’s official Facebook page.

Figure 3.2: Gossip Girl: Social Climbing’s Facebook Application www.facebook.com/gossipgirlsocialclimbing

Gossip Girl’s ability to capitalize on Facebook’s popularity shows the rapid proliferation of social media, but it also speaks to the awareness producers had

35 of their brand as well as the habits of their audience. Gossip Girl’s audience is primarily the 18-24 age demographic. Studies have shown that the viewers more likely to use social media while watching television or to engage in social media because of programming are the 18-34 age demographic (Nielsen, 2012).

Veronica Mars, the story of a teenaged private investigator, first aired on

UPN in September 2004. When UPN and the WB merged in 2007, Veronica Mars moved to the CW where it survived for one season before it was cancelled.

Though Veronica Mars experienced a short run, its impact on its fans was unexpected. Petitions to continue production went unheard and the program was not revived. Several years later in 2012, buzz about a film began in the cult world of Veronica Mars and in 2013 director Robert Thomas took to Kickstarter asking for fans of the program to donate to the cause. Kickstarter is a crowdfunding platform whose mission is to “help bring creative projects to life”

(Gannes, 2013). Kickstarter allows users to offer donors rewards and special experiences in exchange for their support. Veronica Mars offered 32 varying rewards for donors ranging from donations of a single dollar to $10,000 or more.

Donors that donated $2,500 or more were made background extras in the film with the one individual who donated $10,000 receiving a speaking role in the film.

To encourage backers, Veronica Mars star Kristen Bell and Robert Thomas wrote letters to the fans. In one letter Kristen Bell promises to create the

“sleuthiest, snarkiest, it’s-all-fun-and-games-‘til-one-of-you-gets-my-foot-up-

36 your-ass movie we possibly can. I promise to give it my all. I promise to work my hardest” (Veronica Mars Kickstarter). On their Kickstarter page Thomas announced that with six hours to spare on their April 12, 2013 deadline, the film had reached its goal. In fact the project received several accomplishments including “fastest project to reach $1 million, fastest project to reach $2 million, all-time highest-funded project in FILM category, third highest-funded project in

Kickstarter history,” and, with 91, 585 backers, “most project backers of any project in Kickstarter history” (para. 6). As it closed, the project earned $5,

702,153 more than double Thomas’ requested donation. To show their appreciation, the Veronica Mars film Facebook page regularly posts updates for fans to keep track of everything happening behind the scenes. The cast and crew posted a video of the backers arriving in California, where the film was shot, in order to participate in their promised background extras role.

Several of the backers will receive private screenings in their hometown before its release as a reward for their participation in raising money for the film.

The film opened on March 14, 2014.

Social Media and Television Management The question now becomes: how are television managers viewing this shift? Is it truly changing the landscape of television? Or is it a fad that will run its course and fade away as the many others have? The truth is social media has proven that television managers and advertisers need to change their business model in order to grab the attention of the key 18-34 age demographic. Members

37 of Generation Y have grown accustomed to convenience and, possibly, over accessibility; where everything is at their fingertips without the struggle of looking. With that said, how do media managers intend to gain the attention of this age group?

Networked Insights’ The Network Executive’s Social TV Survival Guide

Social Intelligence Report was released in 2012. Its purpose was to educate television network executives on the “unparalleled opportunities for the

[television] industry” (para. 1). The report also purposed itself as a companion for executives looking to make smart, profitable decisions for their networks. The report was the solution to a rapidly growing market with unknown implications.

Researchers have been able to view social television as an opportunity to quickly aggregate feedback as well as “insights and opinion, clues to purchasing behavior, and likes and dislikes” all online where information could be pooled into databases efficiently (p. 2). These types of social conversations gathered large numbers of feedback frequently.

The report rightly describes the audience as viewers seeking an entertaining television experience. There is an abundance of programming to choose from with social media increasingly presenting itself as a form of entertainment all on its own. The study is acutely aware of producers ability to

“tailor content to viewers’ likes and steer clear of their dislikes, creating a more rewarding experience” with the assistance of feedback collected from social media networks (p. 3). Social media has given television managers a large

38 number of volunteer focus groups with viewers willing to share their opinions freely through Twitter, Facebook, and other social media outlets.

Advertisers have turned to paid social media advertising to reach their audience. A 2013 study, “The Paid Social Media Advertising Report,” produced by Nielsen and Vizu outlined advertisers’’ ability to use social media as a tool.

Paid social media advertising, or , is the use of platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube to promote brands.

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and blogs provide free tools for promotional purposes, which 89% of advertisers utilize according to the study.

However, paid social media marketing, which includes paid Facebook advertisements, is very close behind with 75% of the advertising companies surveyed answering that they used these tools. Roughly “two-thirds or 41% of advertisers surveyed said that social media had its own dedicated budgets” (p.

5). The study went on to say most advertisers would be increasing their paid social media budget, 23% of them would be increasing their budget at the expense of the online dispel budget, and 10% would be willing to shift monies away from rich media and video (p. 5).

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Figure 2.3: Technology Adoption Curve

The technology adoption curve maps out the manner in which the population adapts a new form of technology. In this example, the new form of technology is social media. Of the full population, only 2.5% will be innovators.

Based on the social media timeline, BBS, CompuServe, and Geocities are innovators. Early adopters follow innovators at 13.5%. America Online,

SixDegrees and Friendster are early adopters. They followed the blueprint set by the innovator. Early adopters account for 34% of the curve. Tom Anderson, co- founder of MySpace, Mark Zuckerburg, founder of Facebook, and the inventors of Twitter, are early adopters. They also serve as innovators as they created the forms of social media the late majority (34%) and laggards (16%) are familiar with.

Now the questions become: what can brands learn from television programs and how can brands, ie: Coke, Frito Lay, and General Electric, learn from the branding television programs exercise through social media? Deidre

Woollard explains that Scandal has positioned itself as a leading example in the

40 social television arena. The team behind the program has been able to generate a buzz, as previously explained, that has not been seen before. Woollard lists five tactics Scandal utilizes to make itself a stand out program that can also be use for brands. She instructs them to take not. In order to capitalize on this trend of social awareness, Woollard recommends brands to “get your rock stars involved” (2013, para. 2). Create a believable atmosphere where all of the players are involved. Encourage the cast and crew, as “some of your best rock stars might be behind the scenes,” to participate in conversations before, during, and after the program airs (para. 3). Scandal has a Twitter account dedicated to the makeup looks featured on the program from its beauty team. Capitalizing on the buzz and feeling of an open discussion, has set Scandal, and other programs such as The Walking Dead, Pretty Little Liars, and reality competition programs such as The Voice, apart from the competition.

Managers have taken an active role in gaining the attention of those advertisers wish to market their products to. They have seen the great pool of wealth that social media and television has created in terms of an audience to market to and volunteers to share their likes and dislikes. Managers have found a way to utilize social media as a means to generate a profit where consumers view it as a means of entertainment. There are several tactics being used to reach out to the connected generation. Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram have proven particularly successful for their ability to provide insight into the mind of consumers. There has also been no age limit to those who use social media as it

41 has been embraced across age demographics for differing reasons. Mark Burnett, producer of The Apprentice, The Voice, Survivor, and , and ACTV8 were developing an application meant to reinvigorate viewer engagement using the traditional smart phone and tablet in an innovative way. An application created in their partnership would allow mobile users the ability to synchronize any live or recorded video broadcast with their devices to provide a richer interactive experience delivered directly to the user (Lochrie & Coulton, 2011, para. 20).

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CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY

Purpose and Research Questions The term social media was coined in 2004, but based on its definition social media was been a large part of the television viewing experience before 2004 in the form of fan forums. In 2004, social media became a tool for raising brand awareness and measuring an audience’s sentiment on a program or brand. The purpose of this project is to the track the evolution of the engaged viewer through social media in television programming.

Social media have been able to change a long-standing business model. A network would air a program, acquire Nielsen’s audience measurements, and, from those numbers, offer quotes for commercial spots to advertisers. Social media now provide a different means to generating those numbers, but it also eliminates advertising’s intermediary. Television is no longer necessary to reach a large audience as the key demographic that advertisers are most interested in spend a large quantity of their time on the web. Twitter is being used to discuss television programs in real time according to Lochrie and Coulton. Twitter is changing the way that information can be relayed. Individuals no longer have to wait until the following day or week to discuss the occurrences of a program they follow. Information can be disseminated instantaneously.

RQ1: How has social media shifted viewer engagement from 1997-2013?

Viewer engagement has shifted significantly from 1997 to 2013 due to several different factors. Television viewing became individualized, the

43 proliferation of cable networks, video-on-demand, cable cutting viewers, etc. have all shifted television viewership from the big four broadcast networks (CBS,

NBC, Fox, and ABC). Fan forums allowed the viewing audience of particular programming to communicate with one another to speak about the program’s episodes, characters, plot lines, and to predict future episodes. Twitter and

Facebook have made it easier to make the same connection quicker with more participants.

Before conducting research and compiling the survey, the initial expected outcome was that social media has changed the manner in which television is viewed as well as heavily influencing the type of television available to viewers.

However, upon completing research, it was revealed that the shift to smarter television began taking place many years before the proliferation of social media as part of the television viewing experience. Social media has also found a foothold in the realm of competition television as it allows viewers to react instantaneously with what is happening to their favorite contenders.

This research question served as the overarching theme of the study. By studying the shift in television viewership through this time period, research was more readily available and allowed for a set time period to be explored.

Consequently, and conveniently, the time period was later identified through research as the Second Golden Age of television. Programs premiered during this period were also studied for their content and viewer reception.

RQ2: Are social media a more accurate way to track television viewership?

44 Measuring social media impressions has been useful to track if viewers notice product placement. It also measures how many viewers notice commercials. Nielsen has been viewed as flawed for several years as a small sample reflects the entire viewing population’s opinions and affects their options. Individuals are more likely to discuss a program they enjoy. Is it possible that social media can be helpful to networks to measure an audience?

Prior to gathering research it was assumed that social media was truly a more accurate reflection of viewership. Research proved that social media is indeed a viable means to track television as networks can release network generated hashtags allowing them to be counted and sorted. However, this does not take into account viewer generated hashtags that are created by the audience as the program airs on television. For example, Scandal viewers created the hashtag #Olitz which is a mash up of the man characters names (Olivia and Fitz).

Similar to Nielsen ratings, social media relies on a specific sample to be valuable. The only interactions that can be used are the interactions that take place on various social media networks, but they must also contain a specific keyword, phrase, or hashtag in order to be compiled into a list and counted as viewer interaction. During the study hashtags were proven to be used by more than half of the participants as a means to participate in the conversation, but they were not identified as network or viewer generated.

RQ3: How are networks and brands using social media to promote awareness?

45 At this time networks and brands are including social media into their marketing campaigns. The purpose is to examine when social media moved from being a fad that would eventually pass to a large part of life for technologically savvy individuals and for those that are not technologically savvy when did it become something that needed to be learned in order to reach a specific demographic. Broadcasters increasingly embracing Twitter as a means of connecting to the audience, fostering stronger relationships, and driving viewership by including hashtags on the screen (Lochrie & Coulton, 2011).

For the purpose of this study, a survey was compiled and distributed to participants through email, Facebook, and Twitter. This method was used because the survey was compiled through an online service and provided users with a live link for usage. The link allowed participants to take the survey without having to leave the comfort of their home or report to a center. The service also collected the data and provided a streamline source of distribution and collection. As this study is interested in exploring a viewer’s engagement through the scope of social media participants needed to have a basic understanding of social media. Participants were not selected individually from the broader population, but the placement of the online survey was geared toward members of the pre-existing . Participants were not approached at random in front of a supermarket or shopping center without any knowledge of social media. Participants were shown a link that would lead them to the survey, but he or she would decide whether to take the survey. It was also

46 expected that, through its distribution, those who partook were familiar with social media as the link was distributed through Facebook and Twitter. Once the sample, or rather the individuals who partook of the survey, was selected they were asked a series of qualifying questions. Participants were not asked their race or occupations, as it did not greatly affect the outcome of the study. Race was not seen as a determining factor because studies have not shown that race is a driving force behind one’s social media interaction. Participants were, however, asked basic questions about their social media interaction and usage.

They were also asked what forms of social media they used during the course of their day. Those questions led to participants being asked about their knowledge of fan forums. If an individual had never been to an online fan forum for television or film, he or she was then directed to the final two questions of the survey related to device preference and hashtags.

The purpose of this study was to trace the evolution of the engaged viewer through social media. Early on in the text it is argued that social media has been in existence long before its 2004 appearance. Social media in its essence can be traced to the 1970s with bulletin board systems of many kinds. In order to gauge whether a participant had been aware of online discussion boards or fan forums, these questions were asked. For participants who answered no to these questions, they were excluded from the sample as not to distort the analysis and results. The survey, consisting of 11 to 14 questions, was distributed through

Facebook, Twitter, and email in November 2013. The survey was closed in

47 December 2013.

Table 3.1: List of Programs, Networks, Episode Titles, Airdate, and Series Recurring Hashtags

Program Network Episode Airdate Series Recurring Title Hashtag Pretty Little ABC “Who’s in 1/7/2014 #PLL Liars Family the Box?” Pretty Little ABC “Love 1/14/2014 #PLL Liars Family ShAck, Baby” Pretty Little ABC “Close 1/21/2014 #PLL Liars Family Encounters”

Scandal ABC “YOLO” 12/5/2013 #Scandal Scandal ABC “A Door 12/12/2013 #Scandal Marked Exit” Scandal ABC “Ride, , 2/27/2014 #Scandal Ride”

The AMC “Live Bait” 11/17/2013 #TheWalkingDead Walking Dead The AMC “Dead 11/24/2013 #TheWalkingDead Walking Weight” Dead The AMC “Too Far 12/1/2013 #TheWalkingDead Walking Gone” Dead

Scandal, The Walking Dead, and Pretty Little Liars In conjunction with the survey, social media was monitored on the preceding day an episode aired, the day it aired, and the following day to track the use of hashtags for Scandal, The Walking Dead, and Pretty Little Liars. These

48 programs were chosen because of their social media following and their use of hashtags. Hashtags vary greatly on the airdates of each on social media.

Hashtags are created by the network and fans.

Scandal, The Walking Dead, and Pretty Little Liars are programs that have gained a large following via social media. According to each program’s official

Twitter page they collectively have more than six million followers worldwide.

The question can easily become: how do programs and/or networks use their social media influence? At this time, as of March 2014, the official Twitter account for Scandal (@ScandalABC) has 454,000 followers. Pretty Little Liars

(@ABCFpll) has approximately 2.07 million followers. The Walking Dead

(@WalkingDead_AMC) currently has the most followers and, of the three programs listed, has had the most followers for well over a year (2.29 million).

This helps illustrate each program’s social media following. Each program has used their social media differently.

Scandal launched an impressive campaign early on with the hashtag

#AskScandal. This specific hashtag is the most popular network created hashtag that allows fans to follow a continuous stream of questions, answers, and analyses. It also allows the cast of the program to easily interact with fans as they do not have to search for less popular or less used hashtags to answer questions or offer interesting quips about the episode. Scandal has created other hastags over the course of the series to incite conversation and discussion amongst its fans including #WhoIsTheMole, a series arc that explored a possible mole in the

49 White House, the main character, ’s firm of fixers, the distract attorney’s office, the Pentagon, or elsewhere. Fans have created #Olitz, a combination of Olivia and fictional president Fitzgerald Grant’s names, as well as #Gladiators, individuals who are fans of the program, and most recently in season 3, #TheSecretIsOut, as the revelation that Olivia is possibly President

Grant’s mistress (John, 2013).

The same could be said on ABC Family’s Pretty Little Liars. Sheila Seles of

Bluefin Labs offered some insight into the program’s social media popularity and why it works well for the network. By using transmedia storytelling, Pretty Little

Liars is able to engage in storylines outside the span of the hour-long episode

(Seles, 2012). The program has created a world that exists independently of the program’s allotted time block due greatly to social media’s ability to discuss a program, or event, long after it has aired or taken place. In a 2013 Entertainment

Weekly article, Tanner Stransky quotes ABC Family’s vice president of marketing Danielle Mullin regarding social media: “Money can't buy this' type of exposure. It's creating lasting loyalty, which comes back to [the network]. We love social media” (para. 3).

The Walking Dead’s producers handled its success differently than the aforementioned programs. AMC created a series called The Talking Dead in 2011 to follow the program after its season two premiere. The series is an hour long response to “online chatter” meant to “complement” the series, Joel Stillerman, and AMC executive explained (Stelter, 2011).

50 These programs were used to track the trend of using hashtags rather than specific hashtags. They change from week to week as they are introduced to the audience to accompany a specific scene or plotline taking place in that night’s episode. Hashtags were studied to examine the frequency of usage and to provide foreknowledge regarding the survey results. Each program averages well over 300,000 tweets per hashtag throughout the airing of an episode.

51 Figure 3.1: Hashtag usage by Scandal cast members.

Nielsen: State of the Media Nielsen released a social media report in 2012, comparing social media usage in 2011 and 2012. This study was used as a basis because of its sample size.

As the sample size was much larger than what would be surveyed or interviewed in a single city. The Nielsen report revealed “41 percent of tablet owners and 38 percent of smartphone owners use their device daily while in front of their TV screen” (p. 13). Twitter is also the driving force behind the social television phenomena. Research has shown Twitter is the optimal tool due in most part to its ability to reach users in real time. Almost 25% of people between the ages of 18 to 34 admitted to commenting about a television program on social media (p. 14).

As of July 2012, the United States population spent a total of 520.1 billion minutes on their mobile devices and personal computers (PC). Of those 520.1 billion, the minutes were accounted for and placed into Table 3.2 below.

Facebook remains ranked number one as the most used social media network for mobile applications, applications made specifically for mobile devices without logging into a user’s profile through the Internet, mobile web and PC. As expected, due to its importance in driving social television, Twitter is the second used form or social media for applications and mobile web, falling third to

Tumblr on individual’s PCs. The final two slots changed with each platform.

52 Table 3.2: Applications, Mobile Web, and PC use of social media by minutes

Applications Mobile Web PC Facebook 27.0B Facebook 4.18B Facebook 62.2B Twitter 3.68B Twitter 486.2M Tumblr 2.1B foursquare 1.98B Blogger 170.0M Twitter 1.8B Pinterest 721.0M Tumblr 164.6M Pinterest 1.3B Google Lattitude 599.2M Reddit 138.0M Blogger 816.1M

53

CHAPTER 4: RESULTS The purpose of the survey was to explore the television and social of individuals as well as their thoughts and/or understanding of online discussion boards. The survey provided participants with eleven to fourteen questions including identifying questions and opinion questions to determine their frequency of usage. Of the 43 respondents, 34 were female and 9 were male accounting for 79.1% and 20.9%, respectively of those surveyed. Also, of these 43 respondents, 72% were of the 18-34 target age demographic, 13.9% belonged to the 35-44 age demographic, 13.9% belonged to the 45-54 age demographic, and 0 belonged to the 55 and over age demographic. The mean was 3.48 (Standard Deviation=0.85). These questions helped to establish a base for examining social media usage while consuming television.

Participants were asked how frequently they consumed television. To analyze the data, answers were placed on a scale fitting the available choices. On a scale from 1 to 4, 1 being never and 4 being daily, how often did they watch television? The results had a mean of 1.41 (SD=0.73). The frequency of the responses included: 67% of the participants chose daily, 18.6% chose 2-3 times a week, 9% chose once a week, and 4.6% chose never. Participants were also asked if they used social media. One hundred percent of respondents answered that they used social media in one form or another. As a follow-up questions, participants were asked how frequently they used social media. As explained previously, these answers were placed on a scale befitting the available choices for the

54 purpose of analyzing responses. On a scale of 1 to 7, how frequently did they use social media (1 being never and 7 being daily)? The results yielded a mean of

6.88 (SD=0.62). The frequency of the responses included: 0% of the participants selecting never, less than once a month, 2-3 times a month, and once a week, 95% chose daily and 2% chose 2-3 times a week and once a month, respectively. Participants were then asked to select each type of social media they used table 4.1 reflects their responses.

Table 4.1: Types of Social Media and Responses

Types of Social Media Yes No Facebook 42 1 Twitter 22 21 Instagram 32 11 Tumblr 7 36 MySpace 0 0 Pinterest 10 33 GetGlue* 1 43 Viggle 1 42 Miso 0 43 Shazam 2 41 LinkedIn 1 42 *GetGlue was acquired by i.TV in November 2013 and renamed (Williams,

2014).

This is further illustrated by the Nielsen report’s findings in 2012. The Nielsen report has shown that individuals used Facebook more often than any other form of social media.

Participants were then asked if they had ever visited a fan forum and/or online discussion board. For this question, responses were coded to be 1 for yes, 2 for no, and 3 for I do not remember. The average was 1.83 (SD=0.57). The

55 responses are as follows: 23.2% answered yes, 67.4% answered no and 9.3% answered I do not remember. Participants were asked if they participated on a forum. The mean was 1.88 (SD=0.44). Almost 17% of participants admitted to having visited an online discussion board, 79% had not been, and 4.6% did not recall. Based on those responses, participants were then directed to a question exploring their frequency of usage. Of the 7 individuals who participated the frequency of their visiting was between 2-3 times a week and 2-3 times a month.

The final round of questioning was meant to explore individual’s social television interaction. Answers were also coded for analysis. Of the 43 participants, 23 answered in the affirmative when asked if they used social media while watching television. The mean was 1.46 (SD=0.50). After answering the affirmative, the 23 participants were asked about the frequency of their usage.

Participants were asked on a scale from 1 to 7, 1 being never and 7 being daily, how often they used social media. The mean was 6.04 (SD=1.52). More than half of those surveyed, who answered yes to using social media, used social media daily. The following question asked participants what types of social media networks they used while watching television. As research and other published studies have shown, the participants of this survey used Facebook, and Twitter more often while watching television than most other forms of social media as

Facebook and Twitter allow fans of a program to join the both during its airdate and after its airdate. Facebook and Twitter allow for a more seamless water cooler experience on social media than most other forms of social media.

56 Table 4.2: Forms of Social Media Used While Watching Television

Types of Social Media Yes No Facebook 18 5 Twitter 11 12 Instagram 14 9 Tumblr 2 21 MySpace 0 23 Pinterest 0 23 GetGlue 0 23 Viggle 1 22 Miso 0 23 Shazam 1 22 LinkedIn 1 22

The final question of the survey asked the 23 participants that used social media while watching television if they utilized hashtags while using social television.

The mean was 1.08 (SD=0.288). More than 90% of the participants used hashtags while discussing the programs they consumed on television or other secondary devices.

Summary The survey distributed to participants was used exclusively to understand individual’s social media usage while watching television. Several studies have been conducted to study the engagement and interaction. For this survey, participants were asked basic questions about their social media interaction to measure their usage and engagement across different platforms of social media.

The survey also supported published studies that said individuals who used social media, on a whole, used Facebook more often. It was also the most visited

57 social media network of those in use as of March 2014. The age demographic most influenced by social media has been those in the 18 to 34 age demographic.

58

CHAPTER 5: DISCUSSION

The Internet has made it incredibly easy to connect with people all over the world in many different forms of media. We have also seen social media aid in causing the television industry to change its business model. Social media has been adopted into the business model as a form of audience measurement as well as brand awareness. Marketing and advertising agencies have adopted social media as a form of dissemination.

The purpose of this study was to examine the evolution of viewer engagement through the scope of social media: how social media has helped to spread the conversation about these newer, smarter programs. The study revealed that social media was not the catalyst for smarter programming. As television began to shift toward its second golden age in 1997 programs such as, the critically acclaimed HBO original program The Sopranos, became popular without forms of social media. It also revealed that social media as a term was coined in 2004 but had been created and utilized since the 1970s. Social media did, however, change television viewing and effect engagement. Social media has grown as well over the past three decades and has changed tremendously in its delivery. Originally, very localized due to restrictions and additional costs due to its mode of transportation- telephone lines- social media has become a global phenomenon with fewer restrictions and limitations as technological advances continue to be made. Social media has become an important tool for

59 marketers and advertisers to reach their key demographic. Advertisers have also learned that adults between the ages of 35-44 are the most likely to discuss the television program they watch making them an important demographic as well

(Nielsen p.12).

Viewer Engagement has shifted in two forms. Viewers are interested in television anytime-anywhere and they are also interested in more intelligent, demanding content. The business model has been shifted to accommodate two fairly recent developments in the field of television. With programs such as

Scandal, The Walking Dead, Pretty Little Liars, and Mad Men, viewers are required to become more involved in watching these programs with more complex storylines and are conversely expected to recall information as the program progresses to fill in the blanks regarding plot points. With video on-demand features, viewers are now able to watch selected programming whenever they would like to contributing to the anytime anywhere mentality popular amongst millennials and some members of Generation Y. With time-shifting devices such as DVRs, television has shifted from appointment viewing to viewing anytime.

Streaming services such as Netflix, have been able to appeal to the millennials or

“cord-cutters” who are no longer interested in a traditional cable or satellite contract or model for that matter. The process of sitting in front of a television and watching commercials that are not interesting to viewers has become less and less attractive as technology has advanced and allowed for developments

60 such as DVRs and on-demand to offer another form of viewing where one simply did not exist.

Netflix is a considerably less expensive alternative to a cable or satellite subscription and Netflix offers users the ability to choose what they want to watch in a manner that suits their needs. A constant complaint about cable and satellite subscriptions over the years has been the inability to cherry pick the channels under their contract (Ericsson, p. 5). However, on-demand features offered by cable and satellite companies also appeal to viewers as the wait time is considerably less and the episode is “re-aired” with fewer, shorter commercial interruptions. While Netflix does not allow users to cherry pick the content that they offer, Netflix offers users the ability to choose from a plethora of programs and films and, because of its business model, allows users to consume an incredible amount of content in a single sitting. In other words, Netflix has a myriad of content from which users can choose. That content does not change from users to user. However, it allows users to view an entire season, 13 to 22 episodes, of a single program at their will. Cable and satellite subscriptions offer a similar service at a much higher rate or cost to their users.

Viewer engagement has been proven to increase through social media interactions. Interacting with social media encourages viewers/users to pay closer attention to the material appearing on their screen. Neuroscientists have also found that there is a spike in brain activity once individuals’ return their attention to the television screen after tweeting or posting a Facebook post.

61 The majority of individuals who participated in the study were social media users. More than half of the 43 individuals who participated in the survey engaged in social media on a regular basis, mainly Facebook and Twitter.

Limitations

Initially, the limitations of the study were expected to be the manner in which social media is measured. At the present, interactions can be exported to a spreadsheet based on the search conducted for specific keywords or hashtags, but the sentiment of the message is not always favorable. Sometimes users will participate in the use of a hashtag with negative or indifferent sentiments that do not necessarily provide an accurate account of viewer engagement or favorability. It is important to note that because social media evolve as the

Internet does, it is incredibly difficult to create a truly accurate tool for measurement. Measurement varies widely according to the purposes of the study or the desire outcome. For the purposes of this study a survey was used to collect data and measure individuals interaction with social media. Throughout the study, however, the limitations began to become the manner in which the survey was conducted or distributed. If given the opportunity to conduct the study once more, using a sample of individuals who did and did not use social media would help to decipher if social media actually have any effect on television viewership and if individuals were at all aware of any changes that occurred while social media was in use.

62 In addition to having a larger, more diverse sample size, an ideal survey would have asked participants to list programming they found particularly interesting, compelling, and intelligent for the purpose of cross referencing to see what programming individuals are interested in. Another limitation is the rapid manner in which social media, the Internet, changes and how many applications are available for similar purposes. This makes it more difficult to provide one tool of measurement to be used universally. Beyond this, the study did confirm that individuals use Facebook and Twitter to discuss television and that these two forums have become the digital water cooler.

It is also important to mention that producer or creator generated hashtags are often the preferred method of measurement because it was designed specifically for the program it is associated with and is also widely recognized as part of the program’s social media presence. Viewer generated hashtags vary from viewer to viewer and some remain more popular than others as described with the hashtag Olitz for Scandal. For this reason, viewers’ posts may not be counted because it does not appear on the feed or timeline associated with the program. ABC executives and analysts may note Scandal with approximately 200,000 tweets an episode when in reality it is much higher.

Recommendations

For the future, surveyors may be interested in using a larger, less biased sample than the sample used for this study. As previously explained, the survey

63 was distributed using forms of social media creating a predisposition for participants to use and understand the functions of social media. An ideal sample would include individuals that did not receive the survey through forms of social media.

Also, an ideal study would have, at a minimum, one recognized measurement tool that was respected and accepted in the industry. This would allow the study to stand up against other studies. It would appear far less likely to change based on the number of participants or the popularity of one platform over the other.

If this study were to be replicated, researches should observe hashtags that appear on the night of episode airing beyond the producer generated hashtags and a list should be compiled to include those hashtags. Applications that allow researchers to study the frequency of these hashtags will allow the study to go beyond what is offered through official channels such as producer generated content. Researchers should also consider using different forms of dissemination for the survey to include a larger, more accurately representative sample. More questions could be asked regarding the type of device used to participate in the social conversations taking place via social media.

Conclusion This study allowed researchers to examine the manner in which viewer engagement has changed due in large part to the proliferation of social media. It appears to be expected that television would evolve as it has a long history of

64 evolution. It has changed tremendously since its inception in the early twentieth century. From the Big Three becoming the Big Four and as smaller network channels creating a foothold for themselves, DVR and on-demand services and finally companies such as Netflix creating legitimate competition for broadcast channels.

There have been several developments in television that have changed its business model. However, social media’s introduction into mainstream media has allowed advertisers and executive to have a more accurate representation of viewer interest in a specific program.

Social media have become an important of television viewing. The forms became popular for competition programs such as The Voice, The Apprentice, The

Biggest Loser, and Amazing Race, but it has also become popular in and dramas as the preferred method of discussion for the happenings of the program.

Social media as a whole has become the water cooler. It allows users to participate in conversations internationally. Social media changed the landscape of television viewing as well as viewer engagement and has been doing so for many years. As the Internet evolves, so will forms of social media and it will continue to adapt to the desires of users.

65

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71

APPENDIX

Survey

(Choices were assigned number values for the purpose of analyzing data.)

What is your gender?

 Male  Female

What is your age?

 18-34  35-44  45-54  over 55

How often do you watch television weekly?

 Never  Once a Week  2-3 Times a Week  Daily

Block 2

Do you use social media?

 Yes  No

How often do you use social media?

 Never  Less than Once a Month  Once a Month  2-3 Times a Month  Once a Week  2-3 Times a Week  Daily

72 What types of social media do you use? (Check all that apply)

 Facebook  Twitter  Instagram  Tumblr  MySpace  Pinterest  GetGlue  Viggle  Miso  Shazam  Other (Please Specify)

Have you ever been to an online forum or discussion board for television or film?

 Yes  No  I do not remember

Have you ever participated on an online forum or discussion board for television or film?

 Yes  No  I do not remember

How often do you visit online forums or discussion boards?

 Never  Less than Once a Month  Once a Month  2-3 Times a Month  Once a Week  2-3 Times a Week  Daily

Do you use social media while watching television? (For example: do you use keywords or hashtags to participate in the conversation about a specific program? #Scandal #WalkingDead #SonsofAnarchy)

 Yes  No

73 How often do you use social media while watching television?

 Never  Less than Once a Month  Once a Month  2-3 Times a Month  Once a Week  2-3 Times a Week  Daily

On what kinds of devices do you use social media?

 Phone  Tablet  Laptop  Other (Please specify)

What types of social media do you use while watching television? (Check all that apply)

 Facebook  Twitter  Instagram  Tumblr  MySpace  Pinterest  GetGlue  Viggle  Miso  Shazam  Other (Please specify)

Do you use hashtags while using social media? (is: I can't believe that just happened! #PrettyLittleLiars #PLL #Unbelievable)

 Yes  No