How much TV do you watch?

[Nords]

If you want more detail you could change my vote to "about a minute a day, unless spouse wants me to watch a clip"...

 

[obgyn65]

About 1 hour a day. Mainly MSNBC during early evenings. I rarely watch anything else, no time for this.

 

[scrabbler1]

I answered 4-5 hours per day. Some days it is more than 5 hours, some days less han 4 hours. I watch a lot of C-SPAN and PBS because I am a political junkie and hate TV commercials. I like Law & Order (and SVU) which airs on USA, NBC, and TNT on various days at various times. I watch Seinfeld reruns, Jon Stewart, and part of Jay Leno at night for laughs and get some other political junkie fixes on MSNBC and the Sunday morning talking head shows. News12, our local cable TV news station is often on in the background and I have some other scattered shows I watch throughout the day or week, 60 Minutes my favorite.

 

[braumeister]

Less than one hour per year. At other people places (We have no TV at home).

I'm pretty close to this, although we actually have three TV sets, just hooked up to an antenna on the roof. Probably between two and five hours per year, on average. DW watches much less.

 

[REWahoo]

Help me understand the rules here - do you "win" by watching more or less TV than the next guy/gal?

 

[REWahoo]

If you want more detail you could change my vote to "about a minute a day, unless spouse wants me to watch a clip"...

Tell me you won't be watching this just so you can say, "Oh come ON!!!..."

Last Resort Trailer - ABC's TV Show 2012 - YouTube

 

[tangomonster]

I watch MSNBC an hour or two a week. Except for that and a couple of music shows (X Factor and American Idol), the TV is only turned on to watch DVDs from Netflix (some of which are television shows such as Boardwalk Empire, Dexter, Nurse Jackie, and Big Love---which for some reason I don't consider them as TV shows).

I am very interested in the news, but would rather read Time Magazine or the newspaper.

I do envy people who get a lot of enjoyment from television. It's a convenient, relatively cheap, and comfortable means of entertainment. I tried watching some of the new shows (like Ben and Kate, which got great reviews) but can't get into them. I do like some movies, like independent and foreign films, but again, I don't seem to get from them what most people do.

I feel like I have to work a little harder to fill up my time and be entertained than an avid television watcher, but that's okay with me. Just wish that I had more friends who could tear themselves away from TV! And that every restaurant didn't have TVs on!

A television critic noted that the average American watches more TV than he does for his job:

There are 168 hours in a week. Let’s say the average person sleeps 7 hours per night (if you have newborns, you can laugh along with me at that number). That’s 49 hours per week, plus 56 hours per week at work (8 hours per day). So, work + sleep + Internet/TV = 152 hours. That means, conservatively put, the average American only spends 16 hours per week — or two hours per day — not sleeping, working, or watching television, and since the average commute for Americans is 46 minutes a day, it’s really only one hour and 14 minutes each day you leave yourself for showering, eating, exercising, bar-hopping, shopping, sex, and bathing.

"There are 168 hours in a week. Let’s say the average person sleeps 7 hours per night (if you have newborns, you can laugh along with me at that number). That’s 49 hours per week, plus 56 hours per week at work (8 hours per day). So, work + sleep + Internet/TV = 152 hours. That means, conservatively put, the average American only spends 16 hours per week — or two hours per day — not sleeping, working, or watching television, and since the average commute for Americans is 46 minutes a day, it’s really only one hour and 14 minutes each day you leave yourself for showering, eating, exercising, bar-hopping, shopping, sex, and bathing.


I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with that; I’m not judging. I’m just saying, if you’re watching that much television each week, make sure you’re watching something good and not Honey Boo Boo."


The Average American Watches More TV Than The Average TV Critic

​

​

 

[MichaelB]

Does watching a film on DVD count as "TV"?
How about streaming video on the computer?
How about streaming video from Netflix on the tv?

 

[pb4uski]

We usually watch the local new and CBS news in the morning, same thing in the evening and DVR'd shows on nights when we are home. More watching in winter than in summer.

I watch some DVR'd football games and NASCAR races at high speed, skipping huddles and time in between plays and half-time for football and skipping green flag racing except for last 30 or so laps for races.

 

[citrine]

2-3 hours...usually Criminal Minds, Law and Order SVU, Grimm, Masterchef.
I also love watching The Real Housewives of NJ and Bridezillas.....it is a sick addiction!

 

[RE2Boys]

30-60 minutes of news, 0-90 minutes of TV, mostly Netflix, very little current broadcast TV outside the news. Of course, cable is not in my existence.

 

[Ronstar]

Probably an hr a day during summer - hockey, basketball and football games in fall/winter and other stuff about 3-4 hrs a day.

 

[palomalou]

We watch Blue Bloods and Law and Order SVU (although spouse not so much of the latter). I'll also turn on CNN a lot when working in the kitchen alone.

 

[kumquat]

I don't know how to operate the remote. Occasionallly I'll sit down while DW is watching, I usually fall asleep within 10 minutes.

 

[Walt34]

I don't know how to operate the remote. Occasionallly I'll sit down while DW is watching, I usually fall asleep within 10 minutes.

I'm not quite that bad yet but getting there. Recently we moved the big TV downstairs and moved the little one to the spare bedroom. I haven't gotten aroundtuit to hook up the cable for that one and, well, let's just say I don't watch the "Lifetime" channel much.

 

[Nords]

Tell me you won't be watching this just so you can say, "Oh come ON!!!..."

The 3000+ members of Facebook's "Cold War Submariners" group have had their collective harrumphs in a curmudgeonly uproar ever since the project was announced. I'm pretty sure I'll never have to watch it because I'll be reading all about it in excruciating detail.

I hear that a spinoff will involve the crews of a B-52 bomber and a KC-135...

Does watching a film on DVD count as "TV"?
How about streaming video on the computer?
How about streaming video from Netflix on the tv?

Aside from the Four Yorkshiremen, I hardly have the patience to watch a YouTube video or two on this site. I'm saving all the DVDs and streaming video for when I'm immobilized and can't do anything else all day.

 

[REWahoo]

I hear that a spinoff will involve the crews of a B-52 bomber and a KC-135...

A remake of "Dr. Strangelove"?

 

[Tyro]

Possibly more than anyone else here(?) I dunno. Television can be distraction therapy for some.

When DW & I first got together, we didn't have (couldn't afford) a TV - a decent stereo was higher on our priority list. We listened to quite a bit of radio back then - anything from CBS Radio Mystery Theater to Dr. Demento, and our slowly growing album & tape libraries. Decent instruments also took priority over a TV for us, and we played together by ourselves or with a livingroom full of pickers. There were even a few occasions when we'd entertain ourselves by making faces at each other or do our own improv...

It wasn't until the purchase of our second home that we felt comfortable enough to get a real TV (larger than 12" B&W portable) and VCR. When certain other life-altering events occurred, we upgraded to HD, cable (with xtra movie channels) and DVD (haven't taken the plunge to Blu Ray yet).

Through both Gulf Wars, I was a cable news junkie, but burned out on all the fear-mongering, infotainment, and broadcast yellow journalism. Now I/we watch 95+% commercial-free channels (mostly movies), get our news from the likes of Bill Maher, The Daily Show, Colbert Report, and various internet sources, and just recently (since retirement) I've been catching CNBC in small doses again to keep a closer eye on things. We rent an average of about 4 DVDs/ month only because there's a video store a block away, and they make it very convenient for us with perks. Some weekends we have our own flick-fests, either just the two of us or with friends. (Ever tried to watch all 3 extended versions of LotR in a day? It can be done, but it ain't ez... )

(Looking back, I do have one regret. I probably should have told my family to jump in the lake, picked up stakes, gone to film school, and taken my shot at becoming a filmmaker.... heavy sigh... )

Anyone here remember Dream On on HBO starring Brian Benben? That coulda been me, and my life often seemingly goes that way - interspersed with old TV & movie clips.

Tyro

 

[WestLake]

Sort of addicted to TV but I don't watch network comedies or dramas. I like TCM, HGTV, MeTV, PBS and all the news and business channels. Bernie Lo (formerly of Bloomberg, now with CNBC World) is very entertaining. I also like the 'lectures' on CSPAN History/Book TV. Sundays I like CBS features, news talk shows, a good independent film or British period drama/mystery, 60 Minutes and Britcoms after 10 pm on Dallas KERA/PBS (35 year habit).

 

[Meadbh]

Much less than I used to since I got an iPad. I haven't turned the TV on in weeks.
OTOH I am reading more books.

 

[W2R]

I live alone, and leave my big plasma TV on with the sound completely muted, often, without even knowing what show is on. I like the pretty colors and moving light, perhaps as more of a primal fire-watching type of activity or light show than anything.

I also watch shows when there is something on that appeals to me. I lived for years without a TV and was happy with that too. It's all good.

 

[devans0]

1-2 hours. National news and weekend sports. Cooking shows with DW. Ipad (Zite and other news readers are my real mainline addiction).