Buzz, Viewers Diverge

A new television show that generates a lot of online buzz before it airs won't necessarily draw a host of viewers, according to a new study, which found little or no correlation between the amount of such buzz and the size of the audience that ultimately tunes in.

The study, by ad-buying firm Optimedia US, one of the first to examine the issue, raises questions about the effectiveness of social media as a promotional tool for TV. It found that the top five new shows in terms of online buzz -- Fox's talent show "X-Factor," the NBC drama "Playboy Club," the Fox comedy "New Girl," the NBC comedy "Whitney" and the ABC action show "Charlie's Angels" -- didn't rank nearly as high in terms of viewership. The study measured the buzz ahead of a show's initial broadcast, based on factors like Twitter activity, the volume of Google searches related to the show and the number of times people clicked Facebook Inc.'s thumbs-up "Like" icon for the show. It also factored in a show's so-called Klout score, a measurement tied to its popularity on Twitter Inc. and Facebook. Then, the study compared the resulting buzz ranking to the size of the audience for the show's premiere. Optimedia US, a unit of Publicis Groupe SA, said it will study whether the pattern holds true as the season continues.