A new telenovela starring the People Meter

If you thought Univision and Telemundo were the only ones in the business of giving Latinos their much-needed dose of drama, think again. In an effort to explain Latinos what the hell it is that it does, The Nielsen Company this summer debuted a “telenovela” in Humboldt Park, Illinois.According to a July 30 statement, The Nielsen Company’s telenovela is “an innovative approach to demonstrating and informing consumers about the Nielsen Local People Meter technology.” The marketing gimmick –which debuted this summer at the Fiestas Puertorriqueñas– is the creation of FCG Latino, which opted for this “fresh approach” to inform consumers about what Nielsen does and how sample households are randomly selected.

But don’t get too excited: what Nielsen calls a telenovela is simply a 20 x 20 outdoor booth were local actors perform, playing the role of a Latino household receiving the visit from a Nielsen representative. Alas, no zorro-style fighting, nor juicy threesomes! I wonder what type of ratings that thing will get…