Wednesday, June 29, 2005

Do religious differences extend to what movies we watch? A strange answer:

from Variety.com Wed., Jun. 29, 2005

http://www.variety.com/VR1117925329.html

"Movies a shared religion - Sex and violence still tops despite cultural, political attitudes"

"[American] Red State fundamentalists and Christians are as likely to watch violent movies and rent R-rated DVDs as their Blue State counterparts"

"those who are stricter about their religious doctrine are actually more likely to see films rated R for violence than those who are less conservative"

"Our data has shown that most people, even the most religious, are quite satisfied with their moviegoing...They like what they see, they feel there's plenty that appeals to them, and they all partake in the moviegoing fun at fairly equal rates."

"While the study confirmed that a sharp divide on moral issues exists in the country, it found entertainment choices are largely made separately from moral decisions. Cultural conservatives, the report concludes, are 'participating in American culture at virtually the same levels as the rest of society.'"

"In the study, 32% said they were 'very religious' while 45% said 'somewhat religious' and 23% were not religious."

"those who are very religious were the most likely to criticize Hollywood and the movies in general, they were just as satisfied with the films that they did see"

"for the general population overall, 43% agreed with the statement, 'the movie industry is partially responsible for the moral decay of our society.' But that finding was primarily a reflection of the 55% of the very religious who agreed with the claim; less than 30% of those who are not religious said the same."

A "disconnect between attitudes about the entertainment industry and consumers' actual behavior"

"Those who were the most conservative in their religious beliefs were actually more likely to have seen the violent films than those who characterized themselves as more liberal"