Research on sex, violence, and profanity on Television

Sex Loses its Appeal
A State of the Industry Report on Sex on TV
 
Executive Summary

With the increased visibility of raunchy reality series, envelope-pushing dramas, and smutty sitcoms across the broadcast networks, it is a common perception that television is getting filthier with each passing year. On the surface, it is difficult to deny that there is some accuracy in those claims.
 
But on closer inspection, there does seem to be very real improvement here and there. Is the groundswell of opposition to raunchy TV really starting to have an impact on program content? The PTC set out to determine if there has been a quantifiable decrease in sexual content on television. The study examined the first two weeks of the 1998, 2000, and 2002 November sweeps.
 
The results were astounding. Every broadcast network but the WB has experienced a decrease in sexual content during the Family Hour (8-9:00 p.m. ET/PT), and every network but the WB and UPN has shown improvement during the second hour of prime time (9-10:00 p.m. ET/PT). Overall, sexual content is down during the first two hours of prime time. These are the major findings of the Parents Television Council's first State of the Industry report on Sex on TV: Sex Loses its Appeal.
 
Other Findings Include:

• Sexual content during the Family Hour on ABC is down 67% from 1998, with a 60% decrease since 2000 alone. ABC has also shown a 75% decrease in sexual content during the second hour of prime time since 2000.

• ABC was also the only network to show a decrease in sexual content during the last hour of prime time (10-11:00 p.m. ET). Such material is 41% less frequent now on ABC than it was in 1998.

• Sexual content during the Family Hour on Fox is down 48% since 1998. Fox has shown a 79% decrease in sexual content during the second hour of prime time since 1998, and a 75% decrease in the past two years alone.

• On CBS there has been a 6% decrease in sexual content during the Family Hour since 1998, and a 39% decrease in sexual content in the second hour of prime time since 1998.

• NBC's Family Hour has improved over the past two years by 34%. NBC has shown a 37% decrease in sexual content during the second hour of prime time in the past two years.

• Sexual content during Family Hour on UPN is down 13% from 1998.

• Although the WB showed some improvement during the Family Hour between 1998 and 2000 (sexual content was down by 36%), such content was 88% more frequent in 2002 than in 1998.

• The WB and UPN were the only networks to show no improvement during the second hour of prime time (9:00 p.m. ET/PT). Sexual content increased by 50% during that time slot on UPN and by 13% on the WB since 2000.

• Sexual content is down by 9% across all the broadcast networks during the Family Hour since 1998. The quantitative improvements that have been made are offset by some coarsening of content. During the Family Hour in 1998, 84% of all sexual content fell into the category of "innuendo." In 2002, 62% of all sexual content was sexual innuendo, and other types of sexual content became more common, including anatomical/genital references (13%), homosexual references (5%), and references to prostitution (4%).

• Sexual content is down by 12% across all the broadcast networks during the second hour of prime time (9-10:00 p.m. ET/PT), but again, those improvements were offset by more explicit sexual content. Innuendo accounted for 85% of all sexual content during that time slot in 1998. By 2002 innuendo accounted for only 47% of sexual content. In 1998, non-marital sex, references to prostitution, transvestitism, adultery, nudity and pornography accounted for less than 3% of all sexual content. In 2002, such material accounted for 26% of all sexual content. In addition, references to masturbation, strippers and oral sex accounted for an additional 8%.

• Only three of the broadcast networks, ABC, CBS, and NBC schedule programming for the 10:00 hour (ET/PT). Of those three, sexual content was down only on ABC. Although sexual content was up on CBS and NBC, the networks can be credited for saving their worst content for the latest hour of prime time, the hour when the least number of children are watching television.
   
  The fact that this study shows measurably less sex on television -- particularly during the first two hours of prime time -- is not only encouraging, it shatters conventional wisdom about the entertainment industry. Sex doesn't necessarily sell after all.
   
  In recent years, countless surveys have shown that not only are parents increasingly concerned about how exposure to sexual content is affecting their children, but even adults are turned-off by the rampant sex on TV.
   
  A 2001 Family Circle survey showed that 93% of respondents had turned off the TV or changed channels during a program because of sexual content. A Kaiser Family Foundation survey released the same year indicated that 80% of parents were concerned about their children's overexposure to sex and violence, while 63% said they were concerned "a great deal" about sexual content.
   
  Hollywood is finally starting to listen to what the market wants.

Full Report | Statistical Appendix   | Bozell Statement  | Senator Brownback Press Release