Abstract: A method and apparatus for classifying patterns of television programs and commercials, based on learning and discerning of broadcast audio and video signals, wherein the signals might be incomplete and the number of discerning features is large. The apparatus uses a discerner device containing feature extraction, an artificial neural network and control mechanisms. The discerner device classifies signal patterns into classes and stores, records or displays them accordingly on different storage, recording or display devices using the appropriate control mechanisms. The method is operable for classifying many types of signal patterns, but most importantly, those patterns of programs and commercials of television broadcast audio and video signals.