Time Warner Inc. has found immense success with Cartoon Network. Of course, a channel offering 24 hour cartoons is a hit with kids, but their most noteworthy success is Adult Swim. It is geared to appeal to 18 to 24 year old men, but its popularity has grown far past its target demographic.

According to the New York Post, twice as many teens are tuning into Adult Swim than are watching MTV.

If you are a minister to high school or college students, you should be aware of major influences in their lives. This does not mean you need to watch Adult Swim, but you should know about it and how it will likely continue to shape youth culture.

The Center for Parent/Youth Understanding posted an article highlighting the influence and popularity of Adult Swim. Key points from the article include:

• “Adult Swim regularly beats out the late night talk shows (Letterman, Leno, Conan, etc.) among its core demographic, 18-24 year old guys.”
• “According to information from Nielsen Media Research, during one recent week, six of the top 25 programs for 12- to 17-year-olds were from ‘Adult Swim,’ including two in the top 10.”

CPYU also explains the factors attributing to Adult Swim’s success, as well as, a brief summary of its most popular programming. It is a definite read for youth ministers.