One-out-of-three Super Bowl viewers think the commercials are better than the game. A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 58% of American Adults who plan to watch on Sunday think the game is more interesting than the commercials, but 35% disagree and like the commercials better. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
Seventy percent (70%) of prospective male watchers say the game is more interesting than the commercials, but a plurality (49%) of women who intend to watch have more interest in the TV ads.
Fifty-four percent (54%) of all those who plan to watch the Super Bowl say they’ll be watching the big game intensely, while 40% admit they will mainly be socializing while the game is on. Last year, these findings were more evenly divided. Among adults who watch football more than once a week, 77% will be watching intensely.
Male Super Bowl watchers will be paying more attention to the game than females. Adults under the age of 30 who plan to watch will do so more intensely than those who are older.
The survey of 1,000 Adults Who Will Watch Super Bowl was conducted on February 1, 2011 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
The Black Eyed Peas, who were recently labeled as the number one reason to get excited about music by Rolling Stone magazine, were chosen to play the halftime show. Sixty-five percent (65%) of adults who will watch the game plan to stay tuned to the halftime show, comparable to findings for other recent Super Bowls. Twenty-eight percent (28%) will not watch the halftime show.
Just over half (51%) believe the Black Eyed Peas were a good choice for the halftime show, while 29% disagree with that assessment. Another 20% are not sure. By comparison, only 33% thought The Who was a good choice for last year’s halftime show.
When it comes to drinking alcohol during the game, Super Bowl watchers are almost evenly divided. Forty-five percent (45%) will indulge in an alcoholic beverage, while 51% will not. Younger adults are more inclined to drink alcohol during the game then their elders.
