I was checking the news like I usually do and I found this article from a Nielsen study stating the most memorable televised events in US history. Not completely sure if this thread belongs here, but since we're talking about different events from different decades I figured this place would be my best bet. Anyway, Here are the top 20 events according to the survey. I found it very interesting:

1. Sept. 11 tragedy (2001)
2. Hurricane Katrina (2005)
3. O.J. Simpson verdict (1995)
4. Challenger space shuttle disaster (1986)
5. Death of Osama bin Laden (2011)
6. O.J. Simpson white Bronco chase (1994)
7. Earthquake in Japan (2011)
8. Columbine High School shootings (1999)
9. BP oil spill (2010)
10. Princess Diana's funeral (1997)
11. Death of Whitney Houston (2012)
12. Capture and execution of Saddam Hussein (2006)
13. Barack Obama's acceptance speech (2008)
14. The Royal Wedding (2011)
15. Assassination of John F. Kennedy (1963)
16. Oklahoma City bombing (1995)
17. Bush/Gore election results (2000)
18. L.A. riots (1992)
19. Casey Anthony verdict (2011)
20. Funeral of John F. Kennedy (1963)

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/tv-most-memorable-moments-911-oj-katrina-nielsen-121010226.html

Thoughts? How do you guys feel about the list? What would you add/take out? Personally, I disagree with a few of these.

The top ten from this list would belong in my top 20 for sure.

I found it interesting that the death of Whitney Houston is #11 ahead of the Kennedy assasination, and the death of MJ or asssasination of John Lennon is not even there. #11? Are you serious?  (guess coz it's recent news...)

I'd remove the death of "Whitney Houston" and the Casey Anthony verdict from my list.
I'd put the 1969 "Man walks on the moon" Neil Armstrong moment wayyy up there, top 3 for sure.

Robert Kennedy's murder isn't here either. Martin Luther King's either.

Did Nielson only get 20 and 30 year olds to participate?

What about when Reagan was shot? To me that is more memorable than Casey Anthony verdict..
http://0.tqn.com/d/media/1/0/Y/0/-/-/reagan-shooting.jpg

Course that could be my age.

The Bentsen-Quayle VP debate 1988

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRCWbFFRpnY

Interesting list. I had seen the O.J. chase when it was live; regular programming had been interrupted since it was a local breaking news story. I also got to see the O.J. verdict announced on TV even though I was in school. A TV set had been brought into the classroom so we could all watch (and I was shocked to hear the "Not Guilty" verdict, which I personally disagreed with).

And I'm surprised more earthquakes didn't make that list, such as the Northridge (Los Angeles) quake in early 1994, and the Bay Area quake in October 1989 (which occurred just as Game 3 of that year's World Series was about to start... had to wait another week to play said game).

Only three of the 20 items are more than 20 years old, which means that so many great events that the Baby Boomers experienced have been omitted. TV was very developmental throughout the 1950s-1980s as it was king in terms of media before the Internet changed everything. The Joseph McCartney-Army hearings in 1954, The Kennedy-Nixon Debates in 1960, the Beatles on Ed Sullivan in 1964, the first Super Bowl in 1967, the many Vietnam/protest events of the era, the Stock Market Crash of 1987, the Gulf War/Desert Storm of 1991, and so much more. People need a sense of history as the greatest quality comes from building upon the past and learning from it, not abandoning it.

I think the 9/11 event was quite tragic, the day was just full of chaos and it was a day that I'll never forget.

The Michael Jackson death was another memorable moment.

Only three of the 20 items are more than 20 years old, which means that so many great events that the Baby Boomers experienced have been admitted.


Yeah, that surprised me too.

The low rankings of the moon landing (1969) and the debut of the Beatles (1964) surprised me.  I wasn't alive for either but I'd place them as pivotal cultural events.  Oddly enough, the assassination of JFK didn't cross my mind as a TV event.  (Probably because I grew up knowing it as a "film" event - when most of America found out about it through Cronkite's broadcast.)

For what it's worth, in chronological order, I remember the attempt on Reagan, the Challenger disaster, the start of Gulf War I, and 9/11.  (I'd forgotten about the LA Riots and the Hilarious OJ Simpson White Ford Bronco Chase, even though I watched both.)

Very interesting list - and even more interesting to see which things we've all remembered/forgotten/wished-we'd-been-there-for.

27th - Hurricane Gloria's 130 MPH wind hits Atlantic coast

September 27th,1985 It was on tv and winds gusted up to 130MPH! :o

Taken from the article....it explains a lot:

To measure impact, Nielsen and Sony created a score for each event derived by the number of people who viewed the event live, the number who could recall details about where they were during the occurrence and the number who could remember discussing what happened with others. Those parameters may explain why the surreal, slow-speed chase of Simpson's white Ford Bronco on June 17, 1994, ranked higher on the list than the 2011 earthquake in Japan, the Columbine High School shootings and the 2010 BP oil spill.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B_nEGZpXeZg

even though I was 3 1/2 years old I remember reading about The Summer Blackout of 1977 many years later and boy what a day that was!  :o

Taken from the article....it explains a lot:

To measure impact, Nielsen and Sony created a score for each event derived by the number of people who viewed the event live, the number who could recall details about where they were during the occurrence and the number who could remember discussing what happened with others. Those parameters may explain why the surreal, slow-speed chase of Simpson's white Ford Bronco on June 17, 1994, ranked higher on the list than the 2011 earthquake in Japan, the Columbine High School shootings and the 2010 BP oil spill.


Sort of beat me to it, older events wouldn't make the list because there weren't as many televisions then. Also, seldom were the
stations pre-empted so major events were often ignored. Today, with three or four TVs per household and pre-empted programs
if the President stubs his toe it's no wonder events of today will be high on the list.

Another factor is that we have become a world of stupid, mindless zombies glued to the TV to find out what Snookie is doing.
It is sad that most people today have no idea what Higgs Boson is or why it is in the news but they can sure as sh*t tell you
where Katie Holmes is living or when Lindsay Lohan violated parole. Insipid reality TV and celebrity gossip are gauranteed ratings.

Another factor is that we have become a world of stupid, mindless zombies glued to the TV to find out what Snookie is doing.
It is sad that most people today have no idea what Higgs Boson is or why it is in the news but they can sure as sh*t tell you
where Katie Holmes is living or when Lindsay Lohan violated parole. Insipid reality TV and celebrity gossip are guaranteed ratings.


VERY well said. I wanted to give you 2 Karmas, but I'm only allowed 1 every 24 hours.

(Applauds)

How about in 1980, when during Monday Night Football on ABC, Howard Cosell and Frank Gifford were the first to announce the death of John Lennon

One I don't know if it was major news outside of Canada, but a memorable moment occured in February 2010 when Russell Williams, Colonel of CFB Trenton, the largest Air Base in Canada was arrested for murder.  This event was a local happening here, so media coverage was huge.

How about in 1980, when during Monday Night Football on ABC, Howard Cosell and Frank Gifford were the first to announce the death of John Lennon

It was in the paper the next day and all about TV. :o

I'm surprised that the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake/Tsunami didn't make the list.  So many people died, and I remember being glued to the TV as images/videos were coming in.

Speaking of which, I can't believe that was nearly 8 years ago already!!

I'm surprised that the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake/Tsunami didn't make the list.  So many people died, and I remember being glued to the TV as images/videos were coming in.

Speaking of which, I can't believe that was nearly 8 years ago already!!

Glad you mentioned it; that was another disaster that had plenty of TV coverage. :\'(

New York Snow Storm February 11th 1983.

New York Snow Storm February 11th 1983.



Was that news outside of new York?  ???

Oh god, I suppose I'm the one who hasta say:

November 17, 1981: Luke and Laura get married on General Hospital!
:D

http://www.hilaryshepherd.com/rantsnraves/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/luke-and-laura-wedding-pics-1981.jpg

Was that news outside of new York?  ???


but it was on TV, it had lots of coverage but I don't think it was that memorable.

I was checking the news like I usually do and I found this article from a Nielsen study stating the most memorable televised events in US history. Not completely sure if this thread belongs here, but since we're talking about different events from different decades I figured this place would be my best bet. Anyway, Here are the top 20 events according to the survey. I found it very interesting:

1. Sept. 11 tragedy (2001)
2. Hurricane Katrina (2005)
3. O.J. Simpson verdict (1995)
4. Challenger space shuttle disaster (1986)
5. Death of Osama bin Laden (2011)
6. O.J. Simpson white Bronco chase (1994)
7. Earthquake in Japan (2011)
8. Columbine High School shootings (1999)
9. BP oil spill (2010)
10. Princess Diana's funeral (1997)
11. Death of Whitney Houston (2012)
12. Capture and execution of Saddam Hussein (2006)
13. Barack Obama's acceptance speech (2008)
14. The Royal Wedding (2011)
15. Assassination of John F. Kennedy (1963)
16. Oklahoma City bombing (1995)
17. Bush/Gore election results (2000)
18. L.A. riots (1992)
19. Casey Anthony verdict (2011)
20. Funeral of John F. Kennedy (1963)


A few thoughts...

First of all, I agree that 9/11 should be number one in terms of being a memorable event because the attacks themselves were carried out in such a shocking way on live television. The JFK assassination weekend as a whole should be number two though, because remember, even though the assassination itself was not seen at the time, Lee Harvey Oswald was actually shot by Jack Ruby on live TV.

How in the heck is the death of Whitney Houston on here, but not the death of Elvis or Michael Jackson?

Some of these events (i.e. the death of Saddam, the royal wedding last year) probably shouldn't be in the top 20 at all. I remember more people complaining about the gratuitous coverage of royal wedding than actually watching it.

Why would Obama's DNC acceptance speech make the list over the night he actually won the election?

but it was on TV, it had lots of coverage but I don't think it was that memorable.



It was on the tv in New York....ie local news.  But did it get coverage outside of new York? I honestly don't know if it did that's why I'm asking.... I personally know nothing about but it could've been national news and I missed it/ or discounted it because I wasn't in new York.






And, if you don't think it was memorable why list it in the memorable moments thread?

For our International folks, how about the Bradford City Fire in 1985?  I am pretty sure this caught media attention in North America as well ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xQObYPdzZ4

It was on the tv in New York....ie local news.  But did it get coverage outside of new York? I honestly don't know if it did that's why I'm asking.... I personally know nothing about but it could've been national news and I missed it/ or discounted it because I wasn't in new York.






And, if you don't think it was memorable why list it in the memorable moments thread?


I just thought it was.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLD07J2lzmg

internet went crazy that day, newspapers picked it up as well as magazines too as well.

Oh god, I suppose I'm the one who hasta say:

November 17, 1981: Luke and Laura get married on General Hospital!
:D

http://www.hilaryshepherd.com/rantsnraves/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/luke-and-laura-wedding-pics-1981.jpg


If we're gonna go that way, we might as well mention Dallas' "Who shot J. R.?"  It was talked about on lots of news/talk shows. I had stopped watching it by then, but because of the hubbub about it on various talk shows, I decided to watch a couple weeks after, to see when they announced who did it (even though I didn't know the character).

Also the last episode of M*A*S*H* was rather important in television fiction history.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nt0njgVmv4

Power Outage of 2003 August 14th, coming home on the bus and coming off power was down and street lights were as well causing major traffic. Power came back on the next day.

I'm surprised that the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake/Tsunami didn't make the list.  So many people died, and I remember being glued to the TV as images/videos were coming in.

Speaking of which, I can't believe that was nearly 8 years ago already!!


I'm also really surprised that wasn't even on the list! It was all over the news. I also agree that the Royal Wedding shouldn't be on there. I also feel the Casey Anthony case and Obama's acceptance speech shouldn't be there. Same with Whitney. Don't get me wrong. I'm a Whitney fan and was sad to hear of her passing, but I find it odd how she got in over MJ. From what I can remember, the media coverage was nowhere near the magnitude that I witnessed for MJ. It's also find it really odd how she also got in over Elvis and John Lennon's murder. Then again, the survey results all came down to what people can recall seeing live and can remember talking about it with people. Based off the results, I feel that they generally surveyed people in their 20s and 30s. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nt0njgVmv4

Power Outage of 2003 August 14th, coming home on the bus and coming off power was down and street lights were as well causing major traffic. Power came back on the next day.


Yeah, I remember that. I was living in California at the time, but I wondered what it was like being in New York at night during a blackout.

Some other events that I'm not saying should be on the list, but that I personally find memorable:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vW8Gq9ZrNj0

Probably not on the same level of Challenger, but as a space exploration/astronomy nut, I was very sad when I heard about what happened to Columbia that day.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3fOZgNaYI8

Considering that it was nearly 2 months after 9/11, I thought it was another terrorist attack. I think it also deepened my anxiety of flying in planes. I just realized that 2001, in general, was a bad year for American Airlines.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KfzlaCXrdFQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRn0he3YVkQ

Yeah, I remember that. I was living in California at the time, but I wondered what it was like being in New York at night during a blackout.

Some other events that I'm not saying should be on the list, but that I personally find memorable:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vW8Gq9ZrNj0

Probably not on the same level of Challenger, but as a space exploration/astronomy nut, I was very sad when I heard about what happened to Columbia that day.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3fOZgNaYI8

Considering that it was nearly 2 months after 9/11, I thought it was another terrorist attack. I think it also deepened my anxiety of flying in planes. I just realized that 2001, in general, was a bad year for American Airlines.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KfzlaCXrdFQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRn0he3YVkQ


I remember when JFK Jr. was found dead. It's a shame of what happened or what's been happening to the Kennedys over the past 45 years. One thing after another.  :\'(