Can’t we all just get along? If we keep the topic restricted to AMC’s The Walking Dead, we just might.
TheWrap.com reports that a survey conducted by Facebook shows liberals and conservatives see eye to eye on some things. Namely, the number one zombie movie on television.
A Facebook study analyzing politics and culture found the hit AMC drama was among the nine TV shows that have attracted a balanced amount of Facebook “likes” from both sides of the political aisle. To come to their conclusion, Facebook Data Science looked at everyone who liked the campaign page of any Democrat or Republican running for governor, U.S. Senate or U.S. House of Representatives in the midterm elections, then looked at what other pages those people liked.
Beyond the fact that the study reveals just how much Facebook can glean about us without direct permission, the findings reveal some underlying similarities between two groups which rarely see eye to eye.
Other shows which unite viewers include The Voice, American Idol, The Big Bang Theory, Two and a Half Men, Grey’s Anatomy and Criminal Minds.
The list also includes some surprises. FX’s hyper-violent Sons of Anarchy also drew praise from both the left and the right. That’s despite material that hardly appeals to social conservatives, like serial slayings, the adult film business and gang-style warfare.
The most alienating shows offer few shocks. A&E’s Duck Dynasty captures a consistently right of center audience while The Daily Show with Jon Stewart is admired by liberal viewers.
This isn’t the first study breaking down viewing habits by party ideology. In 2011, a study showed that Democrats embrace “morally murky anti-heroes” and network comedies such as Parks and Recreation, while Republicans applaud work-based reality shows (Swamp Loggers, American Pickers) and crime dramas (Castle, Hawaii Five-0).