I tend to respect show runners/directors more when they check in every so often with the fans of a show or movie they are producing through forums, twitter, facebook, or some other form of social media. I'm not looking for some sort of communication or conversation, but when someone in the biz randomly says in an interview "yea, i read this or that forum to brush up on the history or to see what people thought of this or that" it really lets me know that they care about fan reaction and what fans think.
Plus, it's nice to know that in some small way, you're involved in what you like by doing more than just watching it.