• by Wayne Friedman , September 19, 2012

Young-skewing Fox Broadcasting wants to make sure it's following -- and valuing -- social media interaction with its TV shows.

To that end, it has signed a deal with digital media researcher trueAnthem to track social sharing of Fox's digital television content and measuring its social influence. Fox says "it marks the first time a broadcast network has invested significant resources in capturing the value of earned media."

"In order to drive social conversation with our viewers, it’s critical that we understand the way they interact with our content,” stated Melva Benoit, senior vice presidnet of audience intelligence and research strategy for Fox. She adds this new data will help its branded advertising partners.

Chris Hart, chief executive officer of trueAnthem, says one of the keys for Fox will be tracking "real-time social viewing and content sharing." The goal is to optimize distribution, as well as figure out the value of social media, also known as earned media by TV analysts.

The digital media research company will measure audience awareness, engagement, viral distribution and influencer metrics in real time across  multiple social areas, including Facebook, Twitter, GooglePlus and LinkedIn.