The attacks were widely viewed on television. A year after the tragedy, when asked to name the most important event that had happened in their lives over the previous year, nearly 80% of Americans cited 9/11. In New York and Washington, the figure was even higher. The 9/11 attacks were a profoundly personal experience for people living in the cities directly affected by them. When asked a similar question, six-in-ten residents of New York and Washington reported that the attacks had changed their lives at least somewhat – double the rate for people living in small towns and rural areas.