[ssf] TV

[Dan]

Some old stuff. Relevant for the US; I've failed to find British stats.

"TV turns out to be, for individuals, the single most consistent 
predictor of civic disengagement. The television, by one estimate, took 
up 40% of the average American's free time in 1995, up by a third since 
1965. Americans, on average, watch four hours a day."

"Sociologist Robert Putnam’s conclusion is that an hour of TV equals a 
10% reduction in civic activism."

(Interestingly, the effects of the content of TV and viewing habits is 
clearly separated from TV per se. A comparison of news-watching 
audiences to soap-opera watching ones showed the former to be positively 
correlated with civic engagement.)

:)