Give Me Control Of Your Currency, And I Care Not Who Makes The Laws

[Commentary] Control the money, control those who use it. It’s the first thought that came to mind when I learned that Nielsen Holdings is acquiring Arbitron. This was ominously announced on the same day that Nielsen trumpeted its partnership with Twitter, to launch a social-media based measurement tool. Welcome to the Nielsen World Order.

Big Media’s once half-hearted outcries against Nielsen are today even more rarely voiced than they were five years ago. The silence deafens like a Minneapolis snowfall, while Nielsen continues to consolidate media measurement. As somebody who once considered entering the radio ratings industry, I’m chagrined but not surprised by Nielsen’s relentless and seemingly unchallenged pursuit for media currency domination.