Abstract
This article examines the impact of social class on the relationship between ideologies of time and mass media use within the family system. Lengthy observations and in‐depth interviews with 21 families revealed that families from different social strata have distinct beliefs about the value and use of time, beliefs that shape their media‐related behaviors. It is argued that to understand the role of mass media in family life, one must first recognize that media behaviors reflect and contribute to the overall patterns of life within the family system.