February marks sweeps for TV stations, which means that the ratings they garner during February are used to set their ad rates for the next few months. Rather than scheduling some compelling television, Oprah figured she would cut some corners and simply ask her minions to tune in in the most brusk way possible.

Further, she may have violated a contract made with the Nielsen company, who collects the data and creates the ratings for television stations. When stations team up with Nielsen, they pledge to not go out of their way to solicit viewers that have Nielsen boxes, which it appears Oprah very overtly did with this Tweet.

I’m sure very little will come of that breach, but more interesting is the wholesale consumption of her own pride in Oprah’s plea to the people. You’re coming off as a little desperate, Oprah.

Click here to enjoy Deadline’s objective analysis of OWN’s fare in the last line of this article.

I would like to tell you that. But I can’t.

Worthy (in this writer’s opinion, at least) channels like FX gained viewers, while the mass-marketed USA channel reigned supreme with shows like Suits, Burn Notice, and Barely Burned Suit Notice Legal Pains…PSYCH!. Unfortunately, MTV also experienced big gains, which means that more and more people are staring slack jawed at shows like 16 and Pregnant, Jersey Shore, and Awkward. Yay?

Here is the breakdown in terms of total viewers, with the percentages being the change over last year:

1. USA – 3.165 +0.3%
2. Disney Channel – 2.647 +3%
3. ESPN – 2.342 -2%
4. TNT – 2.232 -0.8%
5. History – 1.987 +21%
6. Fox News – 1.883 -7%
7. TBS – 1.614 -10%
8. A&E – 1.561 +7%
9. FX – 1.532 +21%
10. ABC Family – 1.462 +1%
11. Nick At Nite – 1.344 -22%
12. SyFy – 1.330 +11%
13. Discovery – 1.288 +2%
14. Adult Swim – 1.237 -9%
15. HGTV – 1.205 -2%
16. MTV – 1.189 +21%
17. AMC – 1.182 +8%
18. Food Network – 1.177 +3%
19. Comedy Central – 1.006 +3%
20. Bravo – 0.926 +6%

(Deadline)

Some folks are saying Conan O’Brien‘s ratings aren’t very good, because he’s getting beaten regularly by rivals Jay Leno and David Letterman. First, please take a moment to “boo” the name Jay Leno out loud in front of your computer.

Done? Good. Now, here’s the problem: “Conan” on TBS seems to always have less total viewers and often less 18-49 year old viewers than the shows of his older counterparts. However, thanks to newfangled TV gadgets, we now have “plus 7 ratings,” which counts viewers who watch a show on DVR up to 7 days after recording it (and has nothing to do with sneaking way too many of your friends into a party).

If you factor in O’Brien’s plus 7, as his William Morris Endeavor agent Rick Rosen said he does in a recent statement, then Coco is a Hit-O.

“The ratings system needs to catch up to the viewing patterns and the world,” declared Rosen, adding: “To me it’s the most significant challenge to television today.”

Conan‘s audience is younger too. On average, O’Brien’s audience is a Twitter-Trackin’ 34, compared to Leno and Letterman’s Twitter-Fearin’ mid-50s. So maybe “size” isn’t everything. Being young and gangly counts for something too. (Hollywood Reporter)