The incorporation of final 2000 U.S. Census data has led to some changes in
the top 100 television DMAs as ranked by Nielsen Media Research.
Local TV and cable ratings will be based on these new household
estimates.
As Nielsen pointed out to clients, 42 of its 210 measured DMAs (or 20
percent) showed household declines for the 2002-2003 TV season (starting Sept.
23) compared with last season.
Of those, 12 markets -- among them Atlanta, Denver and Rochester, N.Y. --
declined due to counties shifting to another DMA, the researcher pointed out,
while 27 owed their slippages to changes in Census data, such as household
size.
Rochester thus fell from No. 71 to 77 among DMAs, while Buffalo, N.Y. --
which gained one of that market's counties -- jumped from 47th to
44th, the largest leap in the top 50 DMAs.
Similar declines occurred when 1990 Census information was factored into
1991-92 rankings, Nielsen said, and it predicted, 'This phenomenon . will likely
occur with the 2010 Census.'
