According to today’s Hollywood Reporter, something called “Deloitte’s fourth annual State of the Media Democracy report” reveals that 34 percent of Americans rate TV as their favorite medium (up from 27 percent last year), with 71 percent listing it in their top three. Second place went to the Internets; third to music; and fourth to books. Meanwhile, only 22 percent of those polled cited going to the movies as their preferred form of entertainment.
Shocking! Well, not really. If you haven’t heard, the economy’s in the crapper and one of the easiest ways to save money is to cut back on entertainment — a whopping 72 percent of us are doing just that, according to this Deloitte study. When consumers are choosing between the steep price of admission and pay-per-view or a good old fashioned DVD rental, guess which takes the hit? Besides, with pheoms like Lost and American Idol, combined with the continued prominence of cable, a huge chuck of television programming is reliably awesome. So why shouldn’t we all have added two hours to the amount of time we sit in front of the tube this year, to 17.8 hours a week?
As someone who watches an obscene amount of TV (“for work!” she says desperately) and who regularly sees no point in going outside (especially in the winter) when there are Breaking Bad eps to catch up on and Rachel Zoe Projects to gag over, I can dig these stats. I still go to the movies plenty, but nothing beats my own living room.
What about you, PopWatchers? Are you proud members of the Couch Potato Club, preferring the almighty television above all other forms of entertainment, or do you still rank a trip to the multiplex as your be-all, end-all amusement?
Answer in the poll below!
I have to question your economics. My monthly cable bill costs way more than going to the movies 4 times per month. I guess dollar-per-minute, cable is more affordable than the movies. But in terms of “saving money” I’d much rather reduce my monthly cable bill.
yeah but if you’re paying your cable bill AND going to the movies, you’re more likely to cut back on the movies if you are trying to save money, since your cable bill is most likely a fixed cost.
As much as I love TV, when I was little my punishment wasn’t banishment from the television set, instead they took my books away. I’d be nothing without Jane Austen
Good for you, Nerwen! Vive Jane Austen!
For me, its a virtual tie between TV and movies, since I go to the movies 4-5 times per month, based on what’s playing.
I Knew it!
Was there a video game option?
Oh, the fact that books come in fourth makes me want to cry. A lot.
For me, it is reading. Love curling up on the couch with a hot cup of coffee and reading a good old book.
I knew it wasn’t just me!
Now if only people would watch the good shows.
Honestly, it’s hard to choose between the four choices for me. I get almost equal enjoyment out of books, movies, TV, and going online. They all have their good points and their bad points. If I had to, I’d say that books and the Internet tie for first, music and TV tie for second, and movies come in at a very close third.
I think it’s hard for me to answer because I use all forms of entertainment to enjoy one in particular. For example, I go online to read about my favorite movies; I read books about the kinds of music I listen to, and so forth.