Games as #2 leisure activity (American Time Use Survey)
According to the American Time Use Survey, playing games is Americans' second most common leisure activity after watching TV.
Snapshot · Freakonomics Radio
675. Has the New York Times Become a Games Company?
Explore episode
May 15, 2026
Where this was said
Intro Riddle and the Case for Play
At 3:20 · chapter starts 1:59
Dubner's riddle — what do we celebrate in children but look down on in adults? — lands on 'play,' and from there he constructs a case that games deserve more serious attention than they get. He quotes Canadian philosopher Bernard Suits' 1978 definition of game playing as 'the voluntary attempt to overcome unnecessary obstacles,' noting drily that it could double as a definition of life itself. The American Time Use Survey places gaming as Americans' second most popular leisure activity, behind only watching TV — and much of what we watch on TV is live sports, which are themselves games. Dubner frames this as the launch of a new Freakonomics Radio series: 'We Are All Gamers Now.'
Similar snapshots
Only 42% of young men feel understood
Only 42% of young men think women understand their problems, and only 25% of young women say the same about men — a mutual comprehension deficit that previous generations largely closed as they aged.
Parents never mentioned marriage or parenthood
In focus groups across Philadelphia and Raleigh, every hand went up when asked if parents discussed financial stability and education, but no hands went up for marriage or parenthood.
1 in 5 children now only children
The share of American families with only children has risen dramatically, meaning more young people grow up without the negotiation, compromise, and friction that siblings naturally impose.
Young liberal women harassed most online
Young liberal women report experiencing sexual harassment online more frequently than conservative or moderate women, partly due to higher political posting activity drawing hostile responses.
Gen Z feminist identity gap: 15 points
Among Gen Z, a majority of women identify as feminist while only about 40% of men do — a 15-point gap that barely existed among Boomers, Gen X, or Millennials.
Third-space attendance dropped ~20 points post-COVID
A study conducted before and after the pandemic found that the share of Americans with a regular third space — a community gathering spot outside home and work — fell roughly 20 percentage points and has not recovered.
Majority under-50 feel parents saw them as special
Survey data shows a massive generational divide: most over-50s believe their parents viewed them as average, while a majority under-50 say their parents viewed them as special.
Women far less likely to condemn female cheating
When asked whether a woman cheating is morally wrong, young women were far less likely to take a hardline stance than older women or men, suggesting a shared-fate or experiential factor is shaping the judgment.
Men with more friends more likely to date
Survey data shows that men with more close friends are significantly more likely to have recently gone on a date or be in a committed relationship, highlighting the link between social integration and romantic success.
