Worldwide viewing tends to be similar.

Television appears to be the great unifying force of the world. People around the globe watch almost three hours of TV each day and have a dozen channels at their disposal on average, according to a Roper Starch Worldwide survey of 35,580 individuals in 40 countries.

When asked about 16 types of television programs, a majority of viewers said they would like to see more full-length movies (59%), news programs produced in their own country (57%), and comedy shows (53%). Less than half would like to see more informational programs on nature, history, science, etc. (48%), sports events (42%), variety shows (40%), police or detective shows (39%), news programs produced outside their country (36%), magazine and discussion shows (32%), and game shows (31%). Of least interest are cultural programs--opera, dance, etc.--(29%), music videos (28%), cartoons (25%), soap operas (25%), children's shows (23%), and religious...