ABSTRACT
Television is an entertainment and information medium that pervades our lives. Approximately 99% of all U.S. homes have one or more television sets. In addition, 89% of those same homes have a videocassette recorder.1 The typical television household is able to receive upwards of 44 different channels of programming. According to the A.C.Nielsen Company, the average American home has the television set on more than 7 hours per day.2 For many such viewers, television is a source of entertainment and news. For others, television provides a source of companionship or at the very least is background filler. One thing is certain; in the United States today, more people watch television than any other leisure activity.
