Almost every second German citizen uses the television as a substitute for contacts and conversation partners.

Germans are loneliest in front of the television. Whenever they are alone at home with the TV, their loneliness intensifies: 44 percent feel isolated after work and on weekends when they are "sitting alone in front of the television." According to a representative survey by the BAT Leisure Research Institute, single-person households are most affected by this "television loneliness." Over two-thirds (68%) of single people complain of loneliness in such situations, feeling abandoned, sad, and sometimes depressed – women more than men, and the older generation significantly more than the younger.
„"Frequent television viewing reflects growing loneliness, but does not cause it. For many people, especially single people and the elderly, television has become a substitute for missing contacts and conversation partners. TV and telephone temporarily help to alleviate problems, but cannot solve them. High viewership ratings sometimes say more about a lack of social contact than about mere needs for distraction."“
According to the new BAT survey, one in three Germans (35 %) feels lonely in leisure situations "when there's no one around who shares the same leisure interests." More and more people live alone, but fewer and fewer people can live alone. For them, the only options are secondhand contact (via television, video, or home computer) or escaping to the outdoors (through hiking, walking, or going out).
„"For one in four Germans, however, evenings and weekends threaten to become problematic times if they have 'no purpose' and 'nothing to do with themselves.' Boredom, emptiness, and inner loneliness during leisure time are inextricably linked. Distractions, entertainment, and organized leisure activities are often intended only to distract from one's own shortcomings. The growing need for entertainment, especially among television viewers, is less an expression of a desire for amusement than of disappointment at the lack of human contact. Media contact is sought as a substitute to prevent situational loneliness from becoming chronic. Television dispels loneliness. But television is only a seeming solution because it leaves viewers alone with themselves and their problems. While it alleviates the fear of being alone, it also prevents problem-solving reflection on oneself."„