The Marketing Architects Podcast

Episode: Nerd Alert: Why We Can't Stop Watching TV
Date: October 30, 2025
Hosts: Elena Jasper (Marketing Team), Rob Demar (Chief Product Architect, Misfits and Machines)

Episode Overview

This episode of The Marketing Architects dives deep into the question: Why do people still watch so much TV and video, and what does that mean for advertisers? Using research spanning decades and fresh Nielsen data, Elena and Rob unpack viewing trends, the psychological reasons behind our video habits, and implications for marketing strategy.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. TV and Video Consumption: Surprising Data

• Average Viewing Time

  • [01:10] Elena challenges Rob to guess average viewing; he estimates 21–25 hours/week.
  • Actual: Nearly 6 hours per day—over 40 hours/week for the average U.S. adult.

    "The number is pretty crazy. It's almost six hours per day, which is over 40 hours a week. That's the average."
    —Elena ([01:32])

• Viewing Across Devices

  • Data drawn from massive Nielsen panels (TV, online, mobile), covering 1992–2017.
    • 1992: Adults averaged ~35 hours/week.
    • 2017: Increased to 41 hours/week.
  • Despite growth of digital, traditional TV screens still dominate.

    "In this study, 2019, 92% of all viewing still happened on a television set, not a phone."
    —Elena ([04:10])

  • Millennials watch a bit less live TV but still log 4+ hours/day; the increase is largely from older adults.

2. Why Do We Watch So Much TV?

• Psychological & Biological Reasons

  • Research reviewed: 70+ years of media psychology (surveys, diaries, EEG scans, reaction time tasks).
  • Main finding: TV is relaxing, an escape.

    "People watch TV and video primarily to relax and escape."
    —Elena ([05:45])

  • Neurological evidence:
    • EEG: TV viewing leads to more alpha (relaxed) brainwaves; things like reading require more alertness.
    • Secondary task tests: People react slower to outside prompts when watching TV, signifying greater absorption.
  • TV "soaks up cognitive capacity," leaving fewer mental resources to worry or stress.

• Co-Viewing and Shared Experiences

  • Rob suggests (correctly) that TV is often about shared family or group time.

    "Maybe it's because of co viewing too. It's like one of these shared experiences we have in the house... just the thing you can do together without having to use too much brain power."
    —Rob ([05:23])

3. How Viewing Patterns Are Changing

• A slow but significant device shift:
  • 1992: 95% of viewing was live TV.
  • 2017: Live TV at 74%, DVR 10%, online/streaming/smart devices 14%.
  • Post-2017 data (eMarketer): being approximately 50/50 between traditional TVs and digital/mobile, but TV time overall remains enormous.

    "It's still not what Rob had seemed to say that it was, but it looks like it's more like 50, 50 from what I can find from eMarketer. However, the time spent is still crazy. It's still average six hours a day..."
    —Elena ([07:57])

• Elena:
  • "The way we watch might evolve, but total viewing time keeps growing." ([07:04])

4. Marketing Takeaways & Advertising Implications

• TV Isn’t Dying

  • Marketers should ignore “death of TV” narratives and focus on effective media buying across devices.
  • Integration across live, streamed, and device-based viewing is a major challenge for marketers.

    "Advertisers need measurement systems that cut across silos, which that is a big challenge of being on TV is how do you know who you're hitting on what devices."
    —Elena ([09:18])

• Aligning With Viewer Needs

  • Ads that entertain, relax, or emotionally engage are likelier to land with viewers, matching why people tune in.

    "If your ads are entertaining, easy to process, they might resonate more than dense, complicated messages."
    —Elena ([08:31])

  • Emotional ads and humor outperform rational, information-heavy messages for long-term memory on TV.

• Metaphor for Success:

  "Think of TV like an escalator you just step on and it carries you without effort. That's why people keep watching. ...Advertisers who get this ride along smoothly. The ones who try to make you climb stairs instead they lose you halfway up."
  —Elena ([09:38])

Notable Quotes & Moments

• On TV as relaxation:

  "TV, it soaks up our cognitive capacity. You literally have fewer mental resources left over to worry about your problems after watching TV."
  —Elena ([06:02])

• On device viewing trends:

  "I can't believe the amount of people I see walking down the street watching video that's not even safe."
  —Rob ([07:45])

• On personal habits:

  "I have made such a point to try to read for fun at night I can't do it... at night I want to watch. Welcome to Platteville. And just in binge it, just over and over, just tune out, drink from that sweet nectar of endless streaming content."
  —Rob ([06:21])

  • Elena admits reading more than watching, except for high-quality TV like Breaking Bad:

    "I usually read while my husband watches TV... we've been watching Breaking Bad, and he won't let me read while I watch that because I need to be fully engaged."
    —Elena ([10:00])

Key Timestamps for Important Segments

• [01:10] — Guessing/viewing stats; six hours/day revealed
• [03:16] — How much is mobile vs. TV? Device breakdown and generational differences
• [05:23] — Core motivation for TV viewing: relaxation and escape
• [06:21] — TV versus reading discussion and personal habits
• [07:04] — Marketer recommendations as viewing shifts
• [07:57] — The rapid shift toward digital video and its implications
• [08:31] — How ad strategies should match audience mindset
• [09:38] — Metaphor: TV as effortless escalator, advice for advertisers

Takeaways for Marketers

• TV remains a dominant channel for attention—don't write it off.
• Understand: Most people watch to relax; ads should be light, fun, or emotionally driven—not too complex.
• Prepare: Device/platform fragmentation requires new, integrated measurement and targeting.
• Adapt creative: Emotional and humorous content will outperform rational/complex ads, especially on TV.
• Partner wisely: Navigating TV's evolving landscape is complex; expertise helps.

Final Thought:
TV's effortless allure keeps people coming back—advertisers who understand this psychology, and adapt their media and creative strategy accordingly, are set to win in the evolving video landscape.