Why Do TV Networks HATE, Golf Courses LOVE, Daylight Savings Time?
This Sunday, March 13th, we spring forward, by turning our clocks ahead and yes, we lose an hour of sleep. But there's more to it than that. Some folks have a very vested interest in Daylight Savings Time.
According to National Geographic, with the extra hour of daylight (on average) more people will spend time outdoors, pushing back their TV viewing habits. Now a lot of folks record shows and utilize Net Flicks and other programs.
But in general, CBS, ABC and NBC see noticeable drops in viewership after we spring forward.
Conversely, according to the PGA, golf courses LOVE the extra daylight, as people book more tee times and stay longer. Makes sense! Our children's sports practices have also been affected many times. Once we spring forward, baseball isn't played under growing darkness at the beginning of the season.
Criminals are another batch who don't like DST either. According to National Geographic, a 2012 National Crime study done by the National Incident Based Reporting System compared data from the three weeks prior to and three weeks following Daylight Savings time.
The study claims nearly a 40% reduction in robberies and burglaries. The extra hour of darkness in the morning didn't seem to produce much change. Authorities say most criminals are not "morning persons," so DST seems to reduce crime.
Others who don't like it are farmers (less time to work fields in morning), or movie theater owners-for the same reason as the TV networks.
In general, while we lose an hour of sleep, it seems to spur us to go outside, and be more active. Just keep telling yourself that Sunday morning when the alarm goes off and you're throwing it across the room because you lost an hour of snooze time!