TV’s Most Powerful Moments

The Nielson ratings people and Sony surveyed just over 1,000 Americans to determine the top 20 “most universally impactful moments” on television. Here they are:

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)

via TV’s most powerful moments: 9/11, Katrina, O.J., Nielsen study finds | The Lookout – Yahoo! News.

I’ll grant 9/11, but what about the Cuban Missile crisis? The early space launches? The Moon landing? The Watergate hearings? Ronald Reagan getting shot? The Berlin Wall coming down? Operation Desert Storm?

Those compelling moments of watching history unfold didn’t make it but the marriage of Prince William and Kate Middleton did? The Casey Anthony verdict? Whitney Houston?