America, Now With Fewer TVs

Americans may be fatter than ever, and getting fatter, but it's not because we're sitting in front of the TV with our Doritos. Instead, we're sitting in front of our computer with our Doritos. So there. Nielsen Media's latest survey reports a drop in the number of American households with television sets -- that number "is likely to fall" from 115.9 million homes this year to 114.7 million homes next year. Granted, 114.7 million TVs is still quite a few, but nonetheless! This is progress, of a sort, particularly considering that the overall number of households (and people in them, individually speaking) continues to grow.

Here's a fun stat:

Nielsen also reports that the number of households without any TVs is now at its highest level since 1975, with 3 percent of overall homes being TV-free.

3 percent of overall homes will also rub this information in your face, repeatedly, and tell you how they "read" or "watch everything on Hulu."

Why the decrease in TVs? Recession, and, obviously, THE INTERNET. As the New York Times pointed out in May, "That second reason is prompting Nielsen to think about a redefinition of the term 'television household' to include Internet video viewers."

After all...it's not what you're watching on, it's the fact that you're watching.

Gratuitous blast from the past:

TVs or not TVs: Sets declining [NYP]

[JDoll / @thisisjendoll]

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