Television a Big Part of Student Relaxation

The walls are adorned with photographs of smiling college students and posters of Hollywood stars, and the sounds of laughter and gossip fill the air.

And then a hush falls. The girls stop mid-sentence and focus intently on their television set.

The reason? It's 8 p.m. and "Dawson's Creek" is starting.

The show has become a weekly tradition for freshman Anne Smith, who calls the room home, and her friends.

Smith's roommate, freshman psychology major Christian Neely, added, "We usually order pizza and just hang out for the hour."

As the show breaks for a commercial, Neely takes a slice of Domino's and passes on the box. The girls giggle as they recount episodes past and comment on the ever-evolving appearance of their favorite characters.

According to statistics, these UNC students are not unique.

The October issue of the Education Consumer Guide stated that American teenagers watch an average of 22 hours of television each week.

And according to the Arts Education Policy Review, school-aged Americans spend 60 percent more time watching television than they spend in school each year.

This might surprise the average person but not television executives.

Popular shows have been increasingly aimed at young adults, especially with networks like UPN and WB spawning a host of high school and college dramas like "Dawson's Creek," "Felicity," "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," and "Gilmore Girls."

Those networks and other cable channels like MTV and Comedy Central are rapidly gaining viewers, according to Nielsen polls. And at UNC, every student has the option of tuning into cable TV channels.

Berry Roberson, operations manager of Student Telecom Service, said cable TV has been included in students' housing fees as part of Telecom's basic package since spring of 1998, when it was introduced in the high-rise residence halls.

By 2000, every campus room came equipped with cable television, Roberson said.

Freshmen roommates Lauren Shurtleff and Chavi Khanna take advantage of their cable by regularly tuning in to MTV's irreverent dating show "Dismissed" at 11 p.m. weekdays.

"Everything in the room stops -- music, homework and conversations with friends," Shurtleff said. "Chavi and I scream when 'Dismissed' comes on. It's way more fun watching (the show) together because that's roommate time!"

But UNC women aren't the only ones using time spent watching television as time to bond.

Roommates Clint Lloyd, a sophomore business major, and Mark Zaruba, a freshman business major, have made "The Simpsons" a part of their daily routine.

"We watch it just about every day," Zaruba said. "Whenever we're both home and 'The Simpsons' is on, we're watching."

Because reruns are shown daily, these busy students have learned to effortlessly incorporate the half hour into their schedules.

"I do work while watching TV," Zaruba said. "Clint plans around the half hour of 'Simpsons.'"

But regardless of which show they choose to indulge in, most students agree that time in front of the television is a much-needed time of relaxation.

"'Friends' is a nice, funny, mindless show," said freshman Emily Smith. "It's a de-stress half hour."

The Features editor can be reached at features@unc.edu.