Merry Christmas from the Zogby blog!

If your wish was for some Christmas-related polling data, have no fear – we are here to oblige you.

A few weeks ago, we surveyed people about their favorite Christmas songs. You can read our complete release on that here. We also asked about favorite Christmas movies, asking our survey respondents to pick their favorite from our list of about 20 new and classic holiday films.

The winner, selected as the favorite by 18% of our respondents, was It’s a Wonderful Life. Rounding out the top three were A Christmas Story, selected as a favorite by 11%, and Miracle on 34th Street, chosen by 10%.

What is your favorite Christmas movie and why?

Katy culture, lifestyles culture, entertainment

Today’s Zogby blog post comes courtesy of Cheryl Korn, a Writer/Analyst with Zogby International, and an avid hockey fan since she was old enough to follow and understand the game. Thanks Cheryl!

Patrick Kane, a forward with the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League (NHL), made history by scoring the first NHL goal in Finland. This is most likely a moment Kane will carry with him for the rest of his life. But what will he remember about pleading guilty to a noncriminal charge of disorderly conduct after being accused of assaulting a cab driver over a fare dispute this past summer?

Kane could have faced up to 15 days in jail and a $250 fine, but the judge in Kane’s case issued him a conditional discharge. This meant he would avoid facing jail time as long as he does not run into problems with the law for a year. Kane was also ordered to make a statement of apology to the cab driver.

Luckily for Kane, everything seems to be neatly swept under the rug. The NHL has not chosen to punish him for his actions off the ice this past summer. However, how well does this lack of punishment sit with hockey fans and the general public?

According to a recent Zogby Interactive survey, 65% of adults nationwide agree that regardless of Kane’s guilty plea, he should face some sort of disciplinary action from the NHL. Respondents age 65 and older (70%) and parents of children under the age of 17 (69%) are among the most likely to agree. Eighteen percent of those surveyed do not agree and believe Kane should not face any disciplinary action from the NHL.

Electronic Arts Sports’ (EA Sports) NHL 10 was released on September 15. This release featured Kane’s image, and the software company has not said anything about replacing Kane’s image on the cover because of the off-ice incident this past summer. Clearly, this lack of action does not sit well with some. Our survey shows that 42% believe EA Sports should change the cover of the game and remove Kane’s image. Respondents ages 50-64 (48%) and 65 and older (47%) and parents of children under the age of 17 (44%) are among the most likely to agree that the cover should be changed. Three in ten (31%) do not agree that Kane’s image should be removed, with First Globals™ (18-29 year olds) (44%) among the most likely to say that Kane’s image should remain on the cover.

What is your opinion about this? How does this situation compare to the incident a few years ago where former Vancouver Canuck Todd Bertuzzi issued former Colorado Av Steve Moore a check into the boards? The play would end Moore’s hockey playing career. As you may recall, the referee during the game did not call a penalty as the check was deemed legal. However, Bertuzzi was later suspended by the NHL due to the severity of Moore’s injuries. Clearly, Kane could have seriously injured the cab driver during the incident, so why is the NHL continuing to look the other way? Did the NHL “miss the call” by not issuing Kane a suspension or some type of disciplinary action for his conduct off the ice this past summer?

ZogbyFeaturedContributor culture, lifestyles crime, entertainment, first globals, history, international, lifestyle, sports, summer, war, zogby

A recent article in Newsweek magazine poses the question: is the mall dead? The article notes that last year was the first year in half a century where a new indoor mall did not open somewhere in the country. Another recent article notes the high retail vacancy rate in regional malls. Others write that fast-growing “lifestyle centers” – open-air developments that contain some mix of shopping, office space, entertainment, outdoor parks, recreational facilities and housing – are replacing regional and local malls as the new shopping destination of choice.

However, the Newsweek article lays some of the blame for traditional malls’ decline on anti-consumption and pro-environment and fair labor sentiments held by the public. They report that 40% of First Globals prefer to purchase items that are “socially conscious” – ie, environmentally safe and produced through fair labor – and that traditional malls have little to offer that fits this description.

What do you think? Is the rise in the anti-consumption and pro-environment attitudes detailed by Newsweek responsible for the waning fortunes of shopping malls, or are factors like the growth of lifestyle centers and Internet shopping more responsible? Does the economic uncertainty of consumers mean that all shopping centers (and not just malls) are likely to close or have economic difficulties of their own? Where do you plan to do most of your shopping – in a mall, or elsewhere?

Katy Uncategorized consumption, economics, entertainment, environment, first globals, internet, leisure, lifestyle, recreation, shopping

If NBC network executives had the results from our December 2006 comedy poll commissioned by AOL, they may have thought twice about replacing Jay Leno with Conan O’Brien. The table below lists the findings for the question – which of the following late night/talk show hosts do you consider to be the most amusing?

Jay Leno 33%
David Letterman 20%
Jon Stewart 8%
Conan O’Brien 7%

With respect to Conan, he was considerably ahead of Letterman among First Globals™ (18-29 year olds), although still behind Jay Leno. However, among 30-49 year olds, Conan was behind Leno, Letterman, and Jon Stewart.

Nielsen ratings from June 10, 2009 showed Letterman’s viewership with a 3.4 metered-market household rating to NBC’s 2.9. “Late Show” was also up 13% from June 3rd and 17% from last June when Letterman was competing against Leno.

So, who do you prefer, Conan or Letterman? Do you like Jimmy Fallon as a replacement for Conan? Will you be watching Jay Leno’s new show?

ZogbyFeaturedContributor Uncategorized entertainment, first globals, television, war, work

It’s shaping up to be a good, if expensive, week for survey researchers (and others) who are also Beatles fans. This Wednesday, Harmonix Music Systems will release the greatly anticipated The Beatles: Rock Band , a video game which will allow users to jam along with the Beatles interactively on the game’s electronic instruments. That same day, digitally remastered versions of all Beatles studio albums will be released . Serious aficionados will no doubt snap up the box set featuring 14 of these remastered CDs along with brief documentaries detailing the making of each CD.

In a nine page article in the New York Times describing the making of The Beatles: Rock Band, author Daniel Radosh describes the extensive involvement of surviving Beatles Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney as well as Yoko Ono and Olivia and Dhani Harrison in imagining, creating, refining, and publicizing the game. On the decision to place the Beatles in the center of the interactive video game cultural phenomenon, McCartney comments that “I think it reflects where the Beatles are at.. we are halfway between reality and mythology.” McCartney is also a fan of the game’s interactive nature, noting that “you want people to get engaged… [now people can feel as if] they possess or own the song, that they’ve been in it.”

Meanwhile, some pollsters are hard at work confirming hypotheses that will come as little surprise to Beatles fans: more than forty years after their last group recording, the Beatles are judged to be the most liked musical group in America, and their fans are found in every generation. Pew reports that 49% of those surveyed claimed they liked the Beatles “a lot”, and 81% like the Beatles overall. This is the highest favorability percentage for any of the 20 musical groups or artists included in Pew’s survey. The biggest fans are those between 50 and 64, with 65% of this age group liking the Beatles “a lot”, but fans are found in all age groups: 45% of those between 16 and 25 also like the Beatles “a lot”.

Are you a Beatles fan? Do you think any musical group will ever have a cultural or musical impact equal to the Beatles? Do you plan to purchase or play any of the Beatles-related music or games released this week?

Katy culture, lifestyles, media Beatles, best band ever, culture, entertainment, music, polls, video, work

Would you undergo life-saving robotic surgery conducted over the Internet by an overseas surgeon?

If you said yes, you’re in good company. We recently surveyed Americans on their opinions regarding new technologies, and 45% of those surveyed would undergo the surgery described above. 24% of those surveyed would not go through with the surgery and 32% were not sure. Younger respondents, respondents with college degrees, and men were also more likely to agree to the hypothetical surgery.

Also included on this survey was a question about support for an electronic tracking unit connected to the Internet for use by parents on their young children. Overall, 52% of those surveyed approved of this device, while 40% were opposed and the remaining 8% were unsure. To see some additional demographic breakdowns on this question, including the somewhat surprising finding that older respondents are more likely to approve of such a device than younger respondents, check out our press release here.

The questions on this survey were designed to measure our comfort with technologies that (as far as we know) do not exist now but may exist sometime in the future. Many of the technologies we take for granted now – think streaming news and entertainment over the Internet, for example – might have sounded equally strange when described to survey takers ten years ago. Developing accurate and reliable online surveys (such as the survey described above) has been a major technological focus of our company, and we’re excited to see where new technology leads polling and our company in the future.

How do you personally feel about the technology described in our survey? Would you have the robotic life-saving surgery? Would you want to monitor your children’s whereabouts from the internet? Do you think either of these ideas are likely to become reality? Where do you believe the future of technology is headed?

Katy Uncategorized, culture, future entertainment, future, internet, polls, technology, zogby

The new Yankee Stadium is making news, but not for the reasons team management wants. In addition to building a stadium that, after a few games, seems to be allowing too many home runs, empty seats in prime viewing locations are painfully obvious.

According to the Associated Press:  “At the new Yankee Stadium, the best seats in the house have turned out to be the emptiest. The most expensive spots in America’s costliest ballpark have become an embarrassment packing a financial sting to the proud New York Yankees, as the Legends Suite section in the infield has been filled only once in the six games since the $1.5 billion stadium opened last week.

“On most days, the seats that cost $500-$2,500 as part of season tickets and go up to $2,625 for individual games haven’t been close to full. And as TV cameras pick up the patchy attendance with every pitch, it serves as a little tweak to the nation’s richest baseball franchise.”

You can take a look at single ticket prices anywhere in the stadium. Most infield seats in the lower level cost from $375 to $275. Seats behind the outfield fences in the lower level run from $100 to $75. You can get a bleacher seat behind the centerfield bullpen for $14.

Contrast those prices with other New York City attractions. Top prices on Broadway are $136.  The best seats at the Metropolitan Opera cost $550. Jazz clubs with top name artists are normally $35 plus a $10 minimum.

A Zogby Interactive poll done on Feb. 23-24 found 70% saying have cut back on entertainment, recreation and eating out at restaurants.  We reported then that: “The slashing of entertainment budgets isn’t just taking place in poorer households – around 70% of those in all household income brackets, including those with more than $100,000 in household income, said they have reduced their spending on entertainment and at restaurants in the past year. Younger adults are most likely to say they have cut back – 76% of those age 18-29 are spending less on entertainment, compared to 55% of those age 65 and older who say the same.”

Are the Yankees, and perhaps other pro teams, out-pricing the market for seats at games?  Would you pay those prices to watch a ballgame?

Paul consumption, culture, economics, lifestyles entertainment, recreation, zogby

The New York Daily News, MSNBC, and Wall Street Journal (subscription required to view full article) all recently reported that Blockbuster’s recent regulatory filing with the SEC raises “serious doubt” about the company’s ability to survive. The Daily News article reports that the survival of Blockbuster hinges partially on their ability to secure a $250 million loan, while MSNBC notes that “even if the loan is funded, the company said it ‘may not have sufficient liquidity to finance the ongoing obligations of our business, which raises substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern’.”

While Blockbuster remains the largest movie rental chain in America, the success of Netflix (DVD rental through mail) and Redbox (DVD rental through kiosk) has apparently cut into Blockbuster’s profits in recent years.  Discussing the former pervasiveness of the chain,  an article on Salon by Mike Madden notes that “there wasn’t a suburban strip mall or a gentrified city neighborhood in America that didn’t wind up with a Blockbuster outlet.”  But this pervasiveness did not lead all consumers to embrace Blockbuster; in 2005, Blockbuster settled a lawsuit related to their late fee policy. Salon writer Mike Madden harbors no nostalgia for the chain:

“Walking into a Blockbuster, even in its glory days, meant you hadn’t     managed to come up with anything more exciting to do that night than rent some mainstream Hollywood crap you somehow missed in the theaters. “Make it a Blockbuster night” may have been its marketing slogan, but somehow the vibe in the place made it feel like nothing more than a clever way to say “Admit defeat, loser.” Every one of the stores was, and still is, exactly the same: all electric blue and canary yellow, with dizzyingly bright walls, trailers for months-old action flicks playing loudly on overhead TV screens and a few surly employees behind the counter. In a pathetic attempt to be an all-in-one supplier of an entire night’s entertainment, the stores throw some popcorn, candy and soda for sale near the checkout line.”

Some of Zogby’s data suggests that the current recession is leading to an increase in low-cost forms of entertainment (such as DVD rentals) at the expense of  higher-cost forms of entertainment. In a February 2009 interactive poll , 58% of those surveyed agreed that they planned on staying home more instead of going out for entertainment because of the current economic conditions.   But  to judge from their recent financial problems, Blockbuster is not benefiting from people’s preferences for lower-cost entertainment. Why might this be? And have your entertainment plans (dvd rental or otherwise) changed recently?

Katy consumption, culture, economics, lifestyles, media, recreation economy, entertainment, lifestyle, race, recession, zogby

In the past year, many Americans have faced a new economy filled with pink slips, pay cuts, or constant worry about their investment losses. As uncertainty about the nation’s economic situation grows, many have reacted by making some big changes in where they spend their money.

The first to go, nearly across the board, has been the “gravy” in household budgets – the meals out, trips to the movies, and other entertainment and recreation spending. Our latest survey found 70% have cut back on their entertainment expenses – another 40% have changed or canceled their vacation plans and 40% have put off a major purchase such as a new car, electronics or a computer.

Even as many Americans learn to make do without upgrading to the latest electronic gadget or find less expensive or free entertainment alternatives, others have had to make cuts to more essential areas of their budgets, including grocery spending (40%), medical care (16%) and education (9%).

Thinking about your personal financial situation, have the current conditions in the U.S. economy caused you to cut back on your spending in any of these areas? When you think about your own household budget, what’s the first thing to go if you need to cut back?

Steph consumption, economics, lifestyles economy, education, electronics, entertainment, recreation, vacation

A recent article in Newsweek magazine poses the question:  is the mall dead? The article notes that last year was the first year in half a century where a new indoor mall did not open somewhere in the country.  Others write that fast-growing “lifestyle centers” – open-air developments that contain some mix of shopping, office space, entertainment,  outdoor parks, recreational facilities and housing – are replacing  regional and local malls as the new shopping destination of choice. And another recent article in New York Times article  implies that the waning fortunes of shopping malls are the fault of worried consumers unwilling to spend money.

However, the Newsweek article lays some of the blame for traditional malls’ decline on anti-consumption, pro-environment, and fair labor sentiments held by the public. They report that 40% of young shoppers prefer to purchase items that are “socially conscious” –  ie, environmentally safe and produced through fair labor – and that traditional malls have little to offer that fits this description.

Do you think the rise in the anti-consumption and pro-environment attitudes detailed by Newsweek is responsible for the decline of shopping malls, or are factors like the growth of lifestyle centers and internet shopping more responsible? Does consumers’ economic uncertainties mean that all shopping centers (and not just malls) are likely to close or have economic difficulties soon?

Katy consumption, lifestyles, recreation, shopping consumption, entertainment, environment, internet, lifestyle, recreation, shopping