Who researches this drivel and why?

Looking on the BBC 1 teletext news today, I saw the following item.... "People who own a cat are more likely to have a university degree than people who own a dog"..... I know I am a facts, figures and statistics man myself, and often come out with obscure facts, but I can't see the relevance or significance in this. WHO COMES UP WITH THIS DRIVEL AND WHY DO WE NEED TO KNOW? and this was from a serious news channel.... The only relevance I can see in it is that it was a study into cats and dogs, to see that cats can be left longer at home than dogs...