The addition of Broadcast data to Pulsar means you can now bring more traditional media in-line with your social tracking. We understand you might have a few questions about how this all works, so find some of the most frequently answered questions below.
Q: What data sources does Broadcast encompass?
A: Our Broadcast data sources are TV, Radio, and Podcasts. These three data sources are treated separately on the platform, but operate very similarly, and will often be grouped together under the bigger banner of Broadcast.
Q: What search types are available for Broadcast data?
A: You can run a Topic search on any of the three Broadcast data sources available. Panels searches are also available for Radio and TV, allowing you to select which channels or stations you would like to track content from.
Q: Why are the clips only 1 minute long?
A: Since Broadcast content can vary greatly in length, and the transcripts of the content can become quite lengthy as well, we collect Broadcast data in one-minute clips. These clips are pre-segmented, and your queries can match on multiple clips within the same Broadcast segment. However, this does not mean you are limited to single minute clips when accessing this data. Check out the question below on the web player to learn more.
Q: What sort of metrics do you get for Broadcast data?
A: The metrics vary by the data three sources available, but we created this handy little chart to show what sort of metrics are available for each source.
| Podcast | Radio | TV |
Impressions | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
AVE |
| ✔ | ✔ |
Alexa Rank | ✔ |
|
|
Location | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Language | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Duration | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Q: Which languages are currently supported for broadcast data in Pulsar?
A: TV, radio and podcast transcripts are supported in Pulsar for the following languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Korean, Japanese, Portuguese, Dutch, Italian, Danish, Polish, Catalan, Hindi, Russian, Swedish, and Arabic
Q: What is AVE?
A: AVE (Advertising Value Equivalency) is a special metric commonly used in the PR space and is measured in US Dollars. The way this is calculated varies per source and is proprietary.
Q: What constitutes Impressions?
A: Impressions for Broadcast data come from audience viewer counts. This number is recorded for Podcasts, and is generated via Nielsen ratings for TV and Radio.
Q: How does Historical data work?
A: Historic data coverage exists under the following two conditions:
Until 60 days past the broadcast date: The embedded clip will be available as well as access to the web player, allowing you to trim, download, email, and archive clips (see below question about these three options for more details). After 60 days, there will no longer be access to the web player via Pulsar.
2 Years past the broadcast date: Historical transcripts are kept in 1 minute segments. The content will not be removed from the platform after 2 years, (unless by automated search archival due to inactivity), but only the transcript's individual segments will remain intact.
Q: How does the web player work?
A: When you have access to Broadcast content that's less than 60 days on the platform, you will be able to expand that content or posts in a web player designed to allow you to clip the content and choose what way you would like to save it and share it. After 60 days, there will no longer be access to the web player via Pulsar.
On the left side you will see the video/audio feed and traditional playback buttons, as well as markers indicating the selected clip. Beneath this will be a description of the current broadcasted content you have selected, as well as source, genre, and time info. You will also have your three save options; archive, download, and email. (Depending on content restrictions, sometimes one or more of these options may not be available as shown above)
On the right side, the transcript for the clip will be available, shown in 1 minute chunks (which constitute the posts we collect). Similarly colored markers, as are shown on the video timeline are available here to allow you to select the length of the clip based on the transcript.
Q: What is the difference between Download/Archive/Email?
A: The download option will send you a link to a file containing your selected clip from the web player.
The archive option creates a link that retains a web view of the clip for up to the length of transcript archive (2 years), but does not contain any of the extra data accessible.
The email option allows you to email your clip, along with the transcript of the clip and metadata associated with the clip in an easy to share format; there is also the option to copy a link under the email header, which you can then share as you see fit.
Q: Do you cover channel/station X?
A: Whilst we do not have a list immediately available on our public documentation for Broadcast, if you are curious about our coverage, ask your Account Manager and they can confirm what we cover!
Q: I see that Broadcast is a Premium data source. What does that mean?
A: Broadcast sources, unlike some of our other sources, have some special rules surrounding it. As a result, Broadcast data is provided at an additional cost to the clients who wish to use it. If you want to know more about pricing options, please contact your Account Manager.