Your Viewing Habits!

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Ogee Ogilthorpe

Ogee Ogilthorpe

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Clearly we're in unprecedented times, and with essentially no major sports playing from the start of the pandemic through late summer, people had to find other things to do to occupy their time and their televisions. Maybe it was Netflix, maybe it was just plain doing more things outside, or reading more books!

I remember thinking the first couple of months of sports stopping that the first sport(s) that return will be the most watched sports in history; I was dead sure that I would be like a 400-lb guy at a Vegas casino buffet, recording games, watching multiple games a night, etc.

Rather surprisingly, that hasn't happened. I have watched very few Twins games, zero NBA games, maybe watched the same golf but not a lot; I will say I've watched a lot of the NHL playoffs, more hockey than I've ever watched before.

Did that long stint of such a dramatic change in available programming, specifically sports programming, permanently change the viewing habits of a lot of people? How have you changed your viewing habits, if at all? Are you consuming sports the way you did 7-8 months ago? Have you been watching sports as much, more, or less than you used to?

I actually have had the tv just plain OFF more in the last couple months than I ever have in my life. It's not even a conscious effort, in some ways it just seems to be the new norm.

Are you consuming massive quantities of sports on tv or have your habits shifted as well?
 

With regards to sports, I am pretty much the same as before.

MLB/Twins - I was laser focused the first couple of weeks watching games start to finish (like I do normally for the beginning of seasons), now am back to my regular viewing pattern. I follow the scores for every game, DVR the games, watch a few innings live and check in several times when there is a rally. One thing that has increased is I have T-Mobile and got the MLB app for free, so I listen to bits and pieces of games frequently, especially in the afternoon.

NHL/Wild - I watched all the Wild play-off games during their brief bubble stay as I would have normally. Now, I'll check in on play-off games now and then.

NBA Playoffs - Same. Watched very little before/after.

Golf - Same, watch regular events very casually but was zoned in on the PGA Championship.

Non-sports viewing, I started to watch Happy Days & MASH on MeTV around dinner time. Happy Days I had not watched in over 30 years, but I think I am done with it. Fonzie jumped the shark a few weeks ago, and I am finding out that phrase was coined for a legit reason. Before that while the kids were in high school, pretty good sitcom.

MASH I haven't watched in maybe 20 years, other than an episode here or there. Holds up well, if one can get past the fact that the show lasted 11 seasons and the Korean War was only about 3 years.
 

Lots of baseball. More than normal.

Zero NHL. Same as before.

Golf isn't a sport......jk. Still don't watch.

Huge NBA fan but with no Wolves and the annoying sjw crap, I've barely watched any.

There was a bunch of Dodgers games on early. That was awesome being able to switch from Twins to them.
 

Way more podcasts, reading, and audible, and much less TV.
 

tikited said:
Lots of baseball. More than normal.

Zero NHL. Same as before.

Golf isn't a sport......jk. Still don't watch.

Huge NBA fan but with no Wolves and the annoying sjw crap, I've barely watched any.

There was a bunch of Dodgers games on early. That was awesome being able to switch from Twins to them.
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Full disclosure on watching less Twins games; since last year I switched providers so watching any Twins games for me means getting the other remote, switching the tv from cable over to the MLB TV app and dealing with the streaming option, etc. Small hassle, but a hassle nonetheless, or I would be watching a lot of Twins games.

I'm still surprised at how much the tv is just off. Typically I would just leave it on NFL Network or something or reruns of some show but more than it's ever been, the damn tv is just off. Almost frightening
 


maybe it's just my getting older, but my attention span is not it used to be.

I will start watching the Twins, but the slow pace of the games leaves me dial-flipping during the commercial breaks, and if I see something else that looks good, I'll watch that for a while, and flip back to the Twins to check the score.

have watched maybe 5 minutes of NBA.

Watched a little bit of one Wild game before they bit the dust.

Surprisingly, the one team I will watch all the way through is the Loons. Soccer games get over in 2 hours, and I get a kick of the British announcers with their use of language. One game, a Loons player tried to dribble through several defenders, lost the ball, and the announcer said "He ran out of ideas."
I laugh out loud at least once a game at some of the phrases.

As far as other viewing, I've cut way back on the political stuff.

My other guilty pleasure - and it's an acquired taste:

"My 600 lb Life." - a documentary series about people who weigh more than 600 lbs and go to this Doctor in Texas to try and help them lose weight.

and if there is nothing else on, I watch goofy YouTube videos.
 

Sports, I take all the baseball I can get, stayed pretty tuned in to NBA.

Other stuff, I tend to dive in hard, once I eventually take the plunge. I'd heard people talking about Yellowstone, but just hadn't bothered to start it. Then I caught a few minutes of it last Sunday and that's all it took. I polished off all 3 seasons over 3 days.
 

One habit I share with my dad is watching sports with the sound off. Cannot stand most announcing. I'd say I have it muted about %75 if the time. Meanwhile, I have the stereo on or I'm playing guitar.
 

short ornery norwegian said:
maybe it's just my getting older, but my attention span is not it used to be.

As far as other viewing, I've cut way back on the political stuff.
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I know, my attention span was never good to begin with!

Good call on the cutting back of the political stuff. I watch essentially zero political news. What's the point? Extremely tough to find anything that will really shoot straight. I had a client several years ago, a conservative guy who used to watch Fox News at least some; he said he stopped watching because all it does is make you mad. He was dead on the money. Who needs the aggravation? It's about ratings and getting people fired up, you see the nostrils flaring on this board all the time.

I wonder if it's akin to that old saying about what part of the newspaper do you turn to first; I seem to recall something to the effect that if you're one that turns to the obituaries first, you don't live as long. You'll live a lot longer and happier life without watching any of the cable news networks!

Good call, SON!
 



I have been watching the Twins more than I normally do.

Haven't been watching NBA other than 5 minutes here and there. No Timberwolves, no interest.

No NHL- Bandwagon Wild fan

I only watch golf when its a major and I usually nap through it anyways.

I was watching premier league and champions league highlights often earlier in the summer. I will be casually following the loons.

The NBA and NHL seasons out of order just don't do it for me. I normally only closely follow Vikings, U of M football and basketball. I think I will be watching a lot less sports total this year. Everything just feels different and the excitement is gone. Hopefully the NFL and SEC can deliver a good football game to watch. English Premier league is enjoyable to me and I follow Tottenham Hotspur but rarely get to watch the games because I have young kids who demand my attention on weekend mornings.

Im also kind of burnt out on Netflix, Hulu, and Cable TV. I can never find anything good to watch. My wife and I watch a Jeopardy rerun every night. I have actually been reading more and I think I just like TV more in the winter.
 

Lots of Twins, but I wish stadiums would do away with the artificial crowd noise.

Some NHL, but it’s not the same without fans.

No NBA or golf, as before. Not sure which one is more boring.

Lots of The Office and Seinfeld, and some Parks and Rec.
 

FWIW - signed up for the Disney+ bundle, so now I get Disney+, ESPN+ and Hulu. (the basic level with commercials).

I have a feeling I'm going to be watching a lot of stuff on ESPN+. Lots of Boxing, UCF if that's your thing, lots of pro soccer from the US and Europe, plus they have all the ESPN 30-for-30 shows.
 

Lots of Twins baseball, zero NBA (they think they have more leverage with social issues than they really do), almost zero hockey, some golf. Unsolved Mysteries on Netflix is pretty good.
 



I'm taking a break from sports. Really no movies I want to see at home. I find myself watching reality shows. There's not much commitment. They're short. I can walk away any time, come back & pick it right back up. What the show it about is mostly beside the point. It's about the characters. Interesting people can make anything interesting. Boring people can make the most exciting things dull. I've started watching 'Deadliest Catch'. I watched all of 'Joe Kenda, Homicide Hunter'. I've seen all of 'Homestead Rescue'. 'The first 48' is an easy watch.
 

I would randomly watch NBA. But now, the SJW crap, im out.

I have youtubetv, and they have lots of free movies. So i just watch a lot of movies.

I dont watch the news anymore. My wife is into some reality TV shows, so i'll watch those with her for a little bit, but they usually bore me too much
 

Not much change. Not paying total attention, but we have baseball and NBA games on TV. Usually with the sound on for the baseball game. Unless Blyleven is calling the game. Then the sound is off for both games.

Though with all the suffering that's gone on in the world listening to Bert isn'y that bad.

But still...
 

About the same -- mostly kids' movies. Though they're working up to movies like Jurassic Park & Indiana Jones.
 

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