Facebook has what the TV networks want – personal data. In a time when the NSA is being targeted for monitoring our personal information, Facebook uses the data the old fashioned way. They sell it.

Facebook is laying down a new gauntlet in its battle with Twitter to dominate online conversation around television: more data for broadcasters.

This week, Facebook says it will begin sending weekly reports to America’s four largest television networks, offering a glimpse of how much chatter their shows are generating on the social network. The reports will reveal how many “actions” — likes, comments, or shares — a television episode has inspired on Facebook and how many members participated in an action.