What if the Nielsen ratings ( or whatever ) are fake, just like the # of followers for twitter accounts and the # of eyeballs seeing ads on FB etc. Broadcasters want inflated ratings in order to sell ads for more $. Those who measure audiences want to give high #s so they can stay in business. Wouldn't that kind of a system mean viewership #s are inflated?
(Just like how the Bond Rating agencies had incentives to portray the bonds as better quality than they really were.)