Who watches the most TV? Women watch more than men, African-Americans outpace other ethnicities and older Americans tune in at higher rates than those their junior, according to the latest Nielsen Cross-Platform Report. The report shares video consumption across traditional TV, mobile and online.
When it comes to TV viewing, women of all ages spend more time than their male counterparts. Women ages 2+ watch nearly 16 hours of traditional TV more per month than men. On the flipside, men consistently spend more time streaming video online.
Older Americans (65+) watch more than twice as much traditional TV as teens, and roughly 37 percent more TV than those ages 35-49. In terms of the size of the audience, Americans 50-64 make up the largest segment of the traditional TV audience (25%). Interestingly, adults 35-49 represent the largest segment of the Internet video audience (27%) and Americans 25-34 dominate the mobile video audience (30%).
There are also distinct viewing trends by ethnicity, with African-Americans watching the most video content.
- When it comes to traditional TV, African-Americans tune in nearly 213 hours per month, more than twice as much as Asians and roughly 57 hours more than Whites. African-Americans also watch the most mobile video, though less time-shifted TV than the general population.
- Asians have emerged as the hands-down leader in time spent watching video on the Internet, averaging six-plus hours more per month than Whites and nearly four hours more per month than the next closest ethnic group, Hispanics. Asians also watch far less traditional TV than the general population.
- Hispanics watch less traditional TV but more Internet video than the general population, but not at the level of the Asian population.
- Whites watch by far the most time-shifted TV—nearly 50 percent more than Asians, the next closest ethnic group—when looking at all TV homes. They continue to watch the most when the field narrows to only homes with DVRs. Whites also watch less video on the Internet or mobile phones than other ethnic groups.
For more detail on methodology, viewing demographics, mobile video, timeshifted TV, and Internet video, download Nielsen’s Cross-Platform Report.
