Picking up from last week: The CW "has lost about 28 percent of its target audience of 18 to 34 year olds so far this season. Its ratings during this month's 'sweeps' period — the all-important measure upon which future advertising rates are set — are down about 22 percent." That is, um, very bad news.

It's also a chance for the network's brass to deflect accusations that its numbers are pitiful. Rather, it's the guys creating those numbers that have things wrong. Yes, when the reports are bad, blame Nielsen. We do!

CW executives attribute the network's poor ratings performance not to a lack of viewers but to flaws in the system of measure. "Obviously, we would have liked to do better," Ms. Ostroff said this week. "Our young audience certainly knows how to get their content in different ways, and we have to figure out different ways to measure how they're getting it."

The CW has two strategies for this: work with Nielsen Media Research, the company that records ratings, to improve its methodology; and continue efforts to lure more and younger viewers to the network. Despite its stated demographic targets, the CW viewer's median age is 34, Ms. Ostroff says.

Nielsen says in a statement that although it believes its ratings "provide a fair picture of what younger viewers are watching," the audience is challenging to track. "We are working closely with the CW and all of our clients to continuously improve our measurement." [WSJ]