By Danielle Brooks |Staff Writer|

Is there a correlation between the increase of viewing television and the decrease of reading literature?

According to a study by Pew Research Center in 2014, the amount of people who haven’t read a book is at 23 percent. This proportion has nearly tripled since 1978, when only eight percent of people hadn’t read a book.

As busy college students, employees, and in some cases, parents, it can be hard to find the time to sit down and read a good book, but lack of time isn’t the only thing to blame.

Erica Levy is attracted to visual entertainment rather than literature.

“After a long day of school, I would prefer to watch T.V. My favorite show is ‘Survivor’ because I love reality T.V.! I’m more of a visual person, so the T.V. can keep my attention longer than reading a book can,” said Levy.

In today’s world, we have electronic devices that allow us to read, surf the internet, play games, etc. all in one portable device. However, one drawback to these devices is that they can easily distract us.

It’s easy to pull up a book on your tablet, but with Netflix being one button away, you can also have your favorite television series at the tip of your fingers.

“I enjoy watching T.V. because it’s already at my fingertips, ready to go and I could watch anything I want. Although I like reading, having to buy a new book on my iPad or a hard copy can get pricey and inconvenient,” said student Jessica Winter.

The typical college student may not find reading a book after a long day to be fun or relaxing. Winding down on the couch to watch the latest drama or your favorite reality show may sound more ideal.

“The last thing I want to do after a lengthy day at work is read a book. Having to read textbooks and study for classes is more than enough reading for me,” said University of California, Riverside (UCR) student and parent, Veronica Luna.

Not only can the thought of reading a book sound boring to some, it is now becoming a trend for popular book series to come out on the big screen, giving people an even bigger excuse to not read books.

There are many series of books that have loyal followers such as Harry Potter, Twilight, and Fifty Shades of Grey. The one thing that these series have in common is they all have turned into movie franchises.

Even as an avid reader, Cheyenne Crawford anticipates the film version of her favorite novel.

“The one book that I really got into was Fifty Shades of Grey. Even though I would rather read the book than see the movie, I’m planning on seeing the movie when it comes out next year,” said Crawford.

The more books that are turned into movies, the less interest people will have in reading, which may be an unfortunate reality.

If you ever find yourself sick and tired of binge watching reality T.V. shows, consider picking up a book and getting lost in another world.