For those who wonder why I don't watch television

From the Sidney Morning Herald:

Here's the news - now forget it
July 30, 2004


The next time you watch the news on television, bear in mind you're about to forget almost all of it.

According to a study in Germany, most viewers completely forget what they have seen on the TV news.

Seven in 10 people surveyed had forgotten the most important political news item they had seen the previous evening.

One top story on German television news - about a major company wanting to reintroduce the 40-hour week - had been forgotten by 98 per cent of those surveyed.

The news items people best remembered were those with an emotional content or which were accompanied by strong pictures, the television program magazine TV Hoeren und Sehen said.

A report on the resignation of German national football team coach Rudi Voeler was recalled the next day by 54 per cent of viewers.

News of violent attacks or natural catastrophes also tended to stay in people's memories, the survey found.

A report of a terrorist attack in Turkey was remembered by 26 per cent of viewers, while about one in five recalled an item on a whirlwind causing damage to a village in Germany.

However, the study indicated people soon forget news about celebrities.

A report on Princess Caroline of Monaco was recalled the next day by only 3 per cent of viewers.

The study was carried out by the Hamburg-based Gewis Institute which surveyed 1059 men and women between the ages of 16 and 65.