USU students admit dedication to TV
Americans may be glued to the tube.
According to the TV-Turnoff Network Web site, www.tvturnoff.org, 98 percent of Americans have at least one TV, 40 percent of Americans often or always watch TV during dinner, and an average person watches more than four hours of the small screen per day.
Also, the total time TV is on daily in an average home is more than seven hours and there is a one-out-of-four chance that an American will fall asleep with the TV on at least three nights a week.
Statistics are high but TV-Turnoff Network said almost half the country admits to watching TV too much.
Utah State University student Steve Law, a sophomore in economic pre-law, said that’s because it takes no input and there’s no effort required to watch.
Amy Harrah, a freshman majoring in psychology said, “I use TV as an escape from daily things. Some days I say, ‘I’m just going to be a lazy bum because I can.'”
Melissa McGary, a freshman majoring in communications has a different opinion.
“I have a problem with TV,” she said. “It’s a waste of time. It gets to the point where that’s all you do. I think it’s more productive to read a book or write a letter or something else.”
Chris Tingey, a sophomore in film, also said TV is a waste of time unless he’s watching “Simpsons,” “Friends,” the LDS church’s General Conference or a movie.
Most people, however, watch more than seven weeks of small screen per year and by age 65 nearly nine years of their lives were devoted to the box, according to a global marketing company, A.C. Nielsen.
Arti Olsen, a freshman majoring in English, said she watches about two hours of television per day because when the shows are quality it’s good entertainment and fills the downtime hours after classes.
However, she also said since people nationwide are watching so much television “it’s changed our standards and morals.”
“It can [lower self-esteem],” she said. “When we watch commercials and shows that demean what it means to be a human being, it can make you feel inadequate.”
Could America Be Addicted?
Timothy Dumouchel from Wisconsin threatened to sue the cable company in January because he said TV caused his wife to be overweight and his kids to be lazy, according to news reports.
Dumouchel wants $5,000 or three computers, and a lifetime supply of free Internet service from Charter Communications to settle the suit.
According to the report, Dumouchel tried to cancel his cable connection but it remained intact for free from August 1999 to Dec. 23, 2003.
He stated in a written complaint against the company, “I believe that the reason I smoke and drink every day and my wife is overweight is because we watched TV every day for the last four years.”
Dumouchel said he wanted to get the service disconnected because he felt it was addictive, according to the police report.
Locally, Lindy Flint, a freshman majoring in surgical nursing, said TV can only become addictive if a person allows it to.
“Once you sit for so long it’s easier to stay sitting and harder to get going,” she said. “But that’s not the cable company’s fault.”
That Favorite Show
Darrin Zingleman, a junior in finance, said he could see people becoming addicted to TV because it becomes a part of them. He, for example, won’t miss an episode of “Smallville” and said he’s got a friend who thinks he’s Superman.
Amy Harrah also becomes involved in her favorite show, “ER,” and said, “It’s not real life, but it’s exciting and keeps you interested. It’s kind of a rush.”
When she has to miss “ER,” Harrah records it as many other students do.
Jackie Feeney, a senior in psychology, and Ashley Thompson, a sophomore in marketing, both record “The Bachelorette” if they have to miss watching it with the entire Alpha Chi sorority.
The majority of the girls gather every Wednesday at 8 p.m. to watch what Feeney calls “sports for girls.”
“It’s a really interactive viewing experience,” she said.
Thompson and Feeney said the girls get excited and even scream sometimes over the show that brings the sorority together.
“TV is a waste of your life,” Thompson said. “But ‘The Bachelorette’ is never a waste of my time.”
Kappa Delta also meets weekly to watch “Friends” before they have a sisterhood activity. Member Lysh Hernandez, a junior in sociology, said it is fun because everyone likes to relate to their favorite character.
A junior in psychology, Carly McFarland said she doesn’t think any other show would work quite as well with the weekly gatherings that bring the girls and occasional treats and junk food together.
It’s not all about the sitcoms
The average person is not only going to watch their favorite show during the hours spent in front of the TV, but one will also see 20,000 commercials each year and by age 65, he or she will have watched 2 million commercials, according to TV-Turnoff Network.
TV-Turnoff Netword says two-hundred-and-two junk-food ads air during four hours of Saturday morning television and a 2-year-old can develop brand loyalty.
By age 18, an average person will have seen 200,000 violent acts on TV and 16,000 televised murders, according to TV-Turnoff Network.
Extensive television also allows for Americans to become lazier and according to TV-Turnoff Network, watching more than 21 hours of TV a week can double the risk of Type 2 diabetes in men.
-mnewbold@cc.usu.edu