We have some interesting discussion threads going at GateWorld Forum over the ratings numbers for Stargate Atlantis's fourth season. Is the show holding its own? Doing well? Falling into the abyss? Are its ratings only down because more people are time shifting with DVR technology, or are fewer people actually watching this year?

Ironically, since SCI FI Channel rarely (if ever) publishes ratings numbers that include DVR-delayed viewing (Nielsen tracks viewings up to a week after the original broadcast), fans of shows like Stargate may never be able to really answer many of these questions.

What is difficult for us fans to get our brains around, after being told for decades how important ratings are and how a show will live or die by how the numbers are crunched by studios, networks, and advertising executives, is that ratings no longer reflect viewership or popularity.

Those numbers are still important, and they still exist to help networks and advertisers figure out how much 30 seconds of air time ought to cost. But they no longer reflect (with any helpful level of precision, at any rate) how popular a series is.

Maybe a little less speculation is called for as a result. As engaged fans of the show we don't have all the information, and we don't know how many people really watch Atlantis -- especially when one factors in legal and illegal online viewing, and the show's broad international audience. What we do know is that, as low as the published ratings are, it's still the top-rated original drama on SCI FI. And it has been renewed for another season!

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