[GuiA]

I barely watched TV as a kid/teenager living with my parents (it helped that cable isn't that popular in France, where I'm from- most people are content with the 5 free national channels, which are now completed by 15 or so more through the free TNT service); so when I moved out, I never missed it and as such I have never had TV since.

Semi-exception to that, an ex-girlfriend of mine moved at some point in an apartment with cable TV- the difference in the quality of our relationship with or without the TV was noticeable. Without TV, we'd go more out of our way to cook, find things to do, play games, etc.. With TV, a lot of evenings were spent just on the couch staring blankly at the screen (well, I would be programming on the couch while she would be watching TV).

It's a very subjective experience, of course, but all of that makes me feel that TV watching is inherently pernicious and to be avoided as much as possible.

I think a lot of the phenomenon is due to the fact that you can't watch TV in a discrete fashion- as soon as something ends, something else starts and you do not have to do any effort to keep watching. When you watch something like a movie, the activity is clearly defined in time, and as such you don't get sucked in like you do when watching TV.