Can you draw your layout with both options? Is the kitchen the route guests would take to the family room?
I'd want the most visibility of the tv for the kitchen because I catch up on shows while I cook. As long as it does not mess with that, it would be also nice to see the fireplace. Pictures or sketches would help to visualize for us and for you...

How far away is the most visible (from the kitchen) wall? What size TV? How do you like to use your kitchen? (Do you often have the TV on while cooking? Would you enjoy watching TV while cooking?) Can you alternatively have a TV placed in the kitchen?

Personally, I would love to be able to see a TV (if it's close enough / large enough) while cooking. I currently can see our fireplace and not the TV in our family room. I find it frustrating when I'm cooking and my significant other is watching something on TV that sounds interesting. Ours is a gas fireplace that is only on in the winter as an additional heating source. When I remodel, I hope to be able to place a TV somewhere in the kitchen where I can watch while I cook and especially while I clean up.

Why not look at both? Can you put the TV over the fireplace? This is the view from my kitchen island. I love watching TV while cooking.

* I should still be able to see the TV from the kitchen (if it will be placed where the clock is currently). On side wall instead of wall straight ahead.
* Clock will go over fireplace where ever it is.
* we are getting a round kitchen table to open the space in the kitchen up a bit
* we are continuing wood floor from kitchen into family room.

Monkeyjac: Our contractor suggested that to us. don't want the tv that high. We aren't sitting back far enough to view it properly without crimping our necks. And we have the Wii,DVD player and all that jazz hooked up.

If you won't be watching TV while cooking or cleaning (and it is pretty far to really "watch") I would definitely put the fireplace direct from the kitchen and the TV on the side wall. You have the advantage that you can still see the TV on the sidewall from the kitchen in case something exciting happens in the game. I don't think the TV is something nice to look at, unless it is on :)

I like the idea of those watching TV, if is it on the side, will not have their backs to you so you can get their attention and you are more "with them."

With the additional information, I would put the fireplace on the most viewable wall from the kitchen. An unlit (or lit) fireplace is much more pleasing to look at than a turned off TV. Additionally, unless you entertain with the TV on most of the time, a fireplace view when entering the family room from the kitchen would be more welcoming.

We can see both the fireplace and tv from our island. The corner fireplace was always a pain for us in terms of furniture placement but it ended up working out. We integrated them by doing a large wall unit. If I had to choose though, I'd choose seeing the tv over the fireplace as I like watching the telly when I'm prepping on the island.

Here is a link that might be useful: Our Family Room

Regarding the fireplace over the tv, it's true that having the tv over the fireplace isn't the optimal height for viewing from the sofa. Lots of people do it because it works well from a design and layout perspective. One option you could do is put the tv on a wall arm so that you can pull it forward and lower it while watching it, but it may be a pain to do that everytime you want to watch tv from your sofa.

I prefer to see TV. Usually if I'm in the kitchen, I'm cooking, and I enjoy hearing/seeing the TV while I cook or clean up.

Our kitchen and great room form one long corridor separated by a 14' arched doorway. If you put your arms out to your side, and pointed one hand at the cooktop, the other hand would be pointed directly at the fireplace 60 feet away. And I don't want a tv in the kitchen...

...but I like to watch TV while I'm cooking, not watch an unused fireplace (largely...). BUT - I am not a fan of wall-mount TVs.

Our solution will be (we move in this week) to place the TV on a corner stand between the fireplace and wall. The fireplace wall will house some artwork I love... so I'll always have something enjoyable to look at. And the TV will be clearly visible without having to be mounted over the mantel.

I dont' have access to photos that clearly show the layout now, so hopefully this will help. The cooktop is actually centered with the island. The TV will go in the top-left corner of the great room, between the fireplace and the first bank of windows. This plan shows some built-in bookcases that we originally had drawn into the room, but since decided to remove, so the corner stand we have will fit snug.

Sorry to hijack, but pricklypear - you may consider putting up a mirror to be able to see the tv from in your kitchen. It could be like in stores where they need to see around corners.... or like rear view mirrors. Get a pretty one and position it right. The only downside is I watch everything on the dvr and the remote would not work with that set up... It would help when dh is watching and you feel left out ;)

We choose TV. It's not a popular choice, but it fits our lifestyle. We don't have tv's in the bedrooms so this tv get used alot at night-it's rarely on during the day. We are huge football fans and I like the idea of being able to watch while cooking or working on my laptop at the dining table.

Standing at the sink, I have a direct, unobstructed view of the TV set. I do not watch TV while cooking, but I do listen to it. When an interesting segment comes on, I can continue working without stopping. This is personal preference, of course. In addition, I am not a big fan of fireplaces. Ours was dirty, drafty and unattractive. My husband demolished it into a pile of rubble and turned the space into a much needed storage area. Much less dirt in the living space and dining area, all the heat is no longer going out the gaping hole in the roof and clutter is secretly hidden behind mirror doors which reflect an entire view of our beautiful kitchen.

That's a great idea dianalo! I wonder if putting a large mirror on our large mantle over the fireplace would allow me to see the TV. Right now I have some artwork, but we have oodles of blank walls in the house so it would not be a problem to find it a new home.