The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of program-induced engagement on the amount and types of media multitasking while watching TV, to examine the effect of media multitasking on the cognitive and affective evaluation of ads, and to explore the moderating role of brand familiarity. To gain insight into the media-multitasking patterns and motivations of digital natives, two focus-group interviews were conducted with ten college students. Based on findings from those interviews, two lab-based experiments were conducted to test the proposed research question and hypotheses. In the first experiment (n = 104), which relied on self-reported media-multitasking behavior, a 2 (Program Engagement: CHAH vs. CLAH) 2 (Tasking Type: Single vs. Multiple) 2 (Brand Familiarity: High vs. Low) mixed-subjects experiment design was used. In the second study (n = 106), to replicate the findings of the first experiment, a 2 (Program Engagement: CHAH vs. CLAH) 2 (Brand Familiarity: High vs. Low) between- subjects design was used in the context of media multitasking. In addition, an unobtrusive eye- tracking device was used in the second experiment to observe actual amounts of media multitasking.The findings of the two experiments were four fold. First, the findings indicate that when the programs were affectively engaging, programs with a high level of cognitive engagement led to a lower level of overall media multitasking than programs with a low level of cognitive engagement, not only during the programs but also during the commercial breaks. Second, media multitasking led to reduced ad memory, a finding that is consistent with previous studies. Third, an interaction effect between tasking type and program-induced engagement emerged. The findings indicate that even in the same media multitasking situation, people who watched a program with high cognitive engagement reported a higher level of ad memory than people who watched a program with low cognitive engagement due to the attentional spillover effect. Fourth, the findings revealed a possible moderating role of brand familiarity, indicating that brands with a high level of familiarity might reduce the memory deficit effect of media multitasking.