Are The Rich Getting Richer In Prime Time, And Will That Affect Pricing For The Few Remaining Megahits? By Eric Schmuckler

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Which are the television shows that really matter? In an historical sense, the list might include I Love Lucy, which invented the sitcom; All in the Family, that landmark breaker of barriers; M*A*S*H, an antiwar influence in the waning days of Vietnam; consciousness-raising movies Roots and The Day After and Murphy Brown, which proved such a hot “potatoe” for Dan Quayle.

For the business side of television, the scorecard is vastly different. To broadcast networks and the advertisers who foot the bills, the shows that really matter are the ones atop that little list maintained by Nielsen Media Research.

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