Who Watches Cable Anymore?: How Young People Watch TV

As many of us can attest from firsthand experience, cable and satellite TV viewership has been decreasing as streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu have become increasingly popular. In 2020 alone, 6.6 million people "cut the cord" with cable television. [1] At the same time, the amount of time kids and teens spend watching TV has plummeted: In 2013, young people spent an average of three hours per day glued to the television screen. Today, it’s less than half of that—an hour and 12 minutes a day. [2]

This doesn’t necessarily mean youth have reduced their screen time. Instead, they have traded a TV screen for their phone and laptop. In fact, a 2020 study found that the average youth between the ages of 4-15 watched 97 minutes of YouTube and 95 minutes of TikTok per day. [3]

Exposure to sex and violence

It is important to keep in mind that, just as young people’s overall amount of screen time has remained pretty stable over the last decade, their exposure to sex and violence from media has stayed consistent as well. For example, YouTube Kids was in the news because videos with violent content were able to get past their internal filter. [4] In a segment on Good Morning America, the TV hosts created a YouTube account as a 14-year-old to test how well "restricted mode" worked. Perhaps unsurprisingly, they were still able to access Minecraft and Roblox, both of which are popular games among young teens and also known for their sexual content. [5]

Parents need to co-view media with their kids

I’m not saying the internet is bad. I’m the first to agree that a lot of positive things happen and can be found online, as most youth and adults can attest to during the pandemic. But, just as caregivers and other adults influential in kids’ lives have been tasked with co-viewing television content with their children, so too should we co-view other media with our young people as much as possible. Talk to them about the things that they are watching so that we can help them understand what is and is not "real life." This is particularly true as we come to terms with the new normal and need to help young people remain grounded and present.

Thank you to Ms. Hana Muratovic and Ms. Allison Salter for their contributions to this post.