If you hate telemarketing calls, life got better for you this past summer. That's when the government created the National Do-Not-Call Registry. So is it working? Liz Crenshaw begins a 2-part report tonight on telemarketers and your telephone.

Close to 55-million Americans, a third of all US homes, have said "don't call me" to telemarketers. So back in the summer, we began a little experiment. We asked 22 viewers to track their telemarketing calls both before and after the do-not-call list went into effect. We wanted to find out if the list actually made your number the wrong number for telemarketing calls.

JAY SELLEW GETS LOTS OF PHONE CALLS AT HOME. SELLEW IS AN ADVERTISING COPY WRITER, AND SOMETIMES HIS CALLS ARE FROM CLIENTS. BUT 4-TO-5 TIMES A DAY, IT'S A TELEMARKETER RINGING, BREAKING HIS TRAIN OF THOUGHT, DESTROYING HIS FOCUS, INTRUDING INTO HIS WORKING HOURS

Jay Sellew
I just find it very annoying.

Crenshaw
SELLEW IS NOT ALONE. PEOPLE TELL US THEY HATE TELEMARKETING CALLS.

Sellew
I hate when they call at night when you get off of work. You work hard all day and you get home and you have all these phone calls. They bother me. They ask me what things I never thought of or I don't want. It's almost, it's seen as an invasion of privacy.

Viewer
I hang up real quick.

Crenshaw
You hang up really quick. Ever buy anything from them?

No.

Crenshaw
WHAT'S MORE, SO MANY CONSUMERS TOLD THE GOVERNMENT THE SAME THING, THE FEDS FINALLY RESPONDED WITH THE DO-NOT-CALL LIST.

Lois Greisman, Federal Trade Commision
Well we're actually now at 53.4 million. We've seen registration in the order of a hundred thousand telephone numbers a day.

Crenshaw
So now it's time to find out, how's the list working? Last summer, prior to the do-not-call registry, we asked viewers to track a week's worth of telemarketing calls for us. Then after October first, we asked the same viewers to again count their telemarketing calls. So what's happened?

Teresa Llewellyn, Rockville, Md
I was probably getting anywhere 25-to-40 calls a week, and after the no call list it's dropped to about 10-to-15 calls a week if that many, and I'm very happy that the calls have reduced.

Lynn Loss, Bethesda, Md
We went from about a hundred calls a week to no calls, and I think that the do-not-call list is wonderful. I think it's within my rights to ask not to be called.

Crenshaw
OF 20 VIEWERS WHO RESPONDED, 13 REPORT FEWER CALLS, 6 SAY THEY RECEIVED NO CALLS, AND ONLY ONE REPORTS JUST AS MANY CALLS.

IRENE SAYS: "IT SURE IS QUIET AND I AM REALLY ENJOYING THAT, "

JANET AND GLENN TELL US: "IT IS GREAT TO BE FREE OF THESE CALLS, "

MARY SUSAN IS HAPPY TO REPORT: "I HAVE NOT HAD ONE CALL",

JANE SAYS: "IT'S BEEN A VERY PEACEFUL WEEK" ,

WHILE CHARLES CALLS IT : "A WEEK OF PURE BLISS, THE NUMBER OF CALLS DROPPED TO ZILCH."

AND ANN'S CALLS WENT FROM "55 PER WEEK, TO 9, THEN 4",

THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION SAYS OUR RESULTS MIRROR WHAT IT'S HEARING.

Greisman, FTC
We've already heard, now this is of course just anecdotal at this point, but that's the case. It's happening. The phone is ringing less often. The home is a little bit quieter.

Crenshaw
THE FTC SAYS IT'S UP TO CONSUMERS TO HELP MAKE THE DO-NOT-CALL REGISTRY WORK BY REPORTING TELEMARKETERS WHO VIOLATE THE RULES.

Greisman, FTC
We need to hear from you. We very much want those complaints. And you can complain to us the exact same way you registered.

Crenshaw
TO REPORT VIOLATIONS, YOU SHOULD GET THE NAME OF THE COMPANY THAT CALLED, THE PHONE NUMBER OF THE COMPANY, AND THE DATE OF THE CALL. YOU THEN REPORT THE VIOLATION BY CALLING 1-888-382-1222 OR ONLINE AT DO-NOT-CALL.GOV. DON'T FORGET, CONSUMERS ASKED FOR THE DO-NOT-CALL LIST, CONSUMERS TELL US IT'S MAKING A DIFFERENCE.

Viewer
Yeah, big reduction.

Crenshaw
You happy about that?

Viewer
Yeah, very. I can eat supper in peace for a change. I love it.