Social media collects the buzz around new TV series

Vegas and Elementary are the top new shows of the fall TV season. But what's hot on social media? ABC's critical favorite, Nashville, along with NBC's Revolution, also the most popular new show among young-adult viewers.

New data from Trendrr, a research firm that tracks social-media engagement, says the country-flavored soap scored about 112,000 mentions, including those on Twitter, Facebook, GetGlue and Viggle, on the day of its Oct. 10 premiere, while Revolution was close behind with 109,000 for its Sept. 17 opener. Other top scorers among new broadcast network series were ABC's 666 Park Avenue and CW's Arrow.

But while Revolution's social-media buzz climbed with its second episode, to 131,000 mentions, online chatter for almost every other show dropped; Nashville's was cut in half, to about 56,000 for its next episode.

Activity replaces an old measure of audience interest: "It's sort of the new water cooler, in the respect that people say, 'Did you see that?,'" says Brian Hughes, senior VP at ad firm Magna Global Intelligence.

The data doesn't sync with Nielsen ratings, which remain the currency for Madison Avenue ad buyers. And online noise won't point to success if viewers don't like what they see.

But the activity demonstrates involvement in shows: "If you're actively engaged in a show, you're less likely to change the channel, and more likely to tune into the next episode," says Trendrr chief Mark Ghuneim.

Sports, awards shows and other live events generate much higher levels of activity, and serialized dramas with cliffhanger endings score more highly than sitcoms or standalone dramas.

The buzz surrounding new network series was dwarfed by the returns of two TV fright-fests: AMC's The Walking Dead's Oct. 14 return sparked 1.5 million social-media mentions that day, while FX's American Horror Story last week scared up nearly half a million.

Among network newcomers, NBC's Chicago Fire had the biggest percentage of positive chatter and was among the most female-driven in discussion (perhaps about its shirtless firefighters). And NBC's Animal Practice drew the highest proportion of negative comments when it premiered after the Olympics closing ceremonies. Unsurprisingly, it's one of the season's first cancellations.

Top five new series, by total social-media mentions on premiere day:

Nashville (Oct., 10, ABC) 112,090

Revolution (Sept. 17, NBC) 109,701

666 Park Avenue (Sept. 30, ABC) 98,805

Arrow (Oct. 10, CW) 82,460

Last Resort (Sept. 27, ABC) 63,276

Source: Trendrr

USA Today