Normally about this time of year, I might give you a list of the big events planned for the February sweeps. But this isn’t a normal TV year.

There won’t be a February sweeps this year. The sweeps, which are designed to set local advertising rates, were moved from February to March this season rather than deal with any uncertainty that may occur because of the digital conversion that was scheduled to take place Feb. 17 and now may be moved to June.

There had been some speculation that the sweeps would be moved back to February if the digital conversion had been delayed; however, even if the House of Representatives goes along with Monday’s Senate vote to delay the conversion to June 12, the sweeps will stay in March.

The move to March won’t have much impact on network schedules, which have been less concerned about sweeps periods in the post-metered market era anyway.

Sure, the Super Bowl (on NBC this year), the Grammys (on CBS) and the Academy Awards (on ABC every year) were moved to the February sweeps several years ago and remain in the month. ABC also is planning a “Grey’s Anatomy”-“ Private Practice” crossover that looks like a sweeps stunt.

But the networks generally are treating February like any other month and relying on their regular series. Big-name guest stars will appear, but they no longer just appear during a sweeps period. In years past, William Petersen’s last episode as Gil Grissom on “CSI” would have been held for the February sweeps. It ran in mid-January. Similarly, the adorable guest appearance by Beau Bridges as a handyman in a wonderful flashback episode of “Desperate Housewives” ran on back-to-back Sundays in January, rather than in February. And NBC ran the miniseries, “The Last Templar,” in January.

The most notable moves in February by the networks are the return of some series that were rested, notably NBC’s “Heroes” and “Life.”

Locally, the move of the sweeps from February to March means we’ll undoubtedly have to wait a few weeks for the scary new stories that usually pop up during the sweeps.

Jim Toellner, Channel 2’s general manager, said the move to March also reduces the importance of the first sweeps period of the year because the more important May sweeps will begin just about the time the results for March arrive in April.

“They’ll definitely be less important than the traditional February sweeps, which already were the third most important of the year,” said Toellner.

The sweeps will start March 5 and end on April Fools’ Day. The delay in starting the sweeps means it would be best for Channel 2 if its on-air personnel took the one-week unpaid furlough that its owner, Gannett, is demanding or asking its employees to take before the sweeps start. They must take it by March 31.

“Certainly we’d like to have them through the sweeps, but we’ll manage through it,” said Toellner.

He cleared up one misconception — that all station employees must take the furlough. Actually, people who have contracts — usually anchors and reporters — aren’t required to take it.

“Virtually, all of them are taking the full week in fellowship with the rest of the staff,” said Toellner. “Everyone is taking some days.”

Now it can be told: Brian Gatewood, the co-writer of the Fox pilot, “Warlosky,” set in Buffalo is a Western New York native and a 1996 graduate of Nichols School. One of his relatives, WBFO News Director Mark Scott, e-mailed me that bit of news late last week after I wrote about the show. According to a Fox publicist, the pilot script about an ex-cop who becomes a mall security guard is set in a Buffalo mall that clearly is based on Walden Galleria in Cheektowaga.

Channel 7 has named longtime promotions man John DiSciullo to news director. He’s been one of the people running the news department since Glen Horn left. The choice is an unusual one, considering DiSciullo’s background is primarily in promotions, programming and community affairs. However, DiSciullo knows Western New York as well as anyone and for that reason might be a popular staff choice over anyone brought in from outside the area.

The advertising draw of the Super Bowl even in this economy can be confirmed by the success that Channel 2 has had in selling its spots. Toellner said that all but two of the spots have been sold and deals for the two were just about done, too. Toellner wouldn’t say what a 30-second local spot is going for, but a conservative estimate is for $15,000 or more.