Nielsen recently found that Americans watched over 143 hours a month in the second quarter of 2010. It appears that the medium is simply at a crossroads.

Online conversation is having a positive effect on event TV. During Super Bowl XLV, Twitter tracked "tweets per second," or TPS, to measure engagement around the game. Chatter peaked at an all-time sports record of 4,064 TPS.

Even for an everyday series like "Glee," the back channel conversation is present. When on-air, Twitter traffic increases 30-fold until the show is over. It turns out that TV's secret sauce is its ability to gather hundreds of thousands or millions of people for a shared experience.

Mobile phones enable this experience.

The immediacy brought about by this constant connectivity ties us all together around TV. According to a recent study by Digital Clarity, 80% of those 25 and under used a second screen to communicate with friends while watching TV. So, clearly, this isn't a battle between the Internet and TV, or a zero-sum game, but rather live TV and real-time information are converging to reinforce each other.

In the process they are creating something new. It's at this intersection of mobile and traditional media that we will find new audiences.

Viewers are now participants; participants are now connected, which has implications for the actual content. How can television programmers and advertisers get involved in this emergent behavior and even enhance the experience?

Twitter's Robin Sloan uses the term "conversational choreography," which encourages programmers to acknowledge viewers as the medium, not just the destination. To Sloan, this is becoming a crucial part of any major TV event -- just as important as focusing the stage lights or charging up the microphones.

So what does conversational choreography entail? It is important to revisit the basics. Understand the viewer: How are users already participating in second-screen social viewing? It's important to understand the behaviors of those you are creating for. Consider pre-event anticipation, preparation, and awareness, as well as the actual event experience, interactions, and flow. Add post-show memories, souvenir and effects.

Placing interactions strategically can help create an engaging experience, too. What is the story? Celebrity can amplify its effect and increase the likelihood that a desired audience will gather. Finally, translate the story across interfaces. It is important to establish and maintain a presence, while unifying focus for one experience across multiple screens.

This is not the future, this is happening now. For those willing to break yesterday's rules, some long overdue, fresh new opportunities await. Wired recently stated that TV is moving from a "vast wasteland" to a "vast garden." Today, "TV is a crazy, weed-filled, wonderful, out-of-control garden." It is time to rethink TV. It is time to imagine what it could be and redefine it for the participatory culture of tomorrow.