I know I can't be alone in having pet peeves about television. Heck, just in the few hours between writing this piece out in long hand (yes I'm still computer-less though I had it for an hour yesterday... before it crashed again and was returned back to Best Buy's Geek Squad) and typing it in I came across this piece which elated me because I'm so glad I'm not alone in finding that 'saved by zero" radio and tv ad maddening.

Some of us have peeved over grammar, as well as periodically over other topics ( holidays, for example) but I think a place is needed to vent and peeve about television. Some of us wrote in Writing Down the Bones about our relationships and family traditions regarding tv. And I'm sure some don't like any tv, a topic some of us discussed here.

So here is a place to share your peeves. It's quite possible someone else's peeve may describe something you do and if so that's ok... this is all subjective and let's avoid being too heavy handed or judgemental. Violators of this will receive a virtual wedgie.

Here are my three television pet peeves:
1) TV shows that don't start on the hour of half hour but rather a few minutes after. These inevitably cause people (by which I mean klutzy guys like me) to miss the beginning or end of programs. And, yes, I could fix this via tivo or a dvr or something but I try to live a life as free of gadgets and gizmos as possible. Or, put simply, I am that guy you see with a bumper sticker that says something like "simplicity matters" or "simplify your life" or somesuch. (Can't believe I can't recall the exact wording of my own car's bumper sticker but it's been a long day...

2) People who talk to you while you are trying to watch a program, especially if or when their questions pertain to said program. Inevitably their questions will overlap with the parts of the show you are trying to watch and the person will ask a question about something that happened (i.e why did that person do this or that) and you will, despite being proud of being a pretty relaxed patient, want to snap: "I don't know! Ok!? I'd be able to answer your questions (preferrably during the commercials) if I had not missed parts of the show because I made the mistake of listening to all of your annoying questions!?"

Not this happened to me, of course.

3. Shows that drag out something that could take five minutes (such as the results of voting by the tv audience) to instead take 30 or 60 minutes. This was something that drove me crazy when I gave American Idol a chance this past season and was of several reasons (the main one being guilt) that I stopped watching The Moment of Truth last season.

Addendum:

4 - When tv "news" shows be it Inside Edition, Hollywood Today, We-R-As-Fake-As-Can Bet, etc cover celebreties, papparazi style, in a way we as kids studied and sometimes documented the destruction of ants through use of a magnifying class. I have come a long way from defending some paparrazi after the death of lady di. Now I find it disturbing on many levels, both how it cheapens tv news (somehow doing what seems impossible, making it have even lower credibility) and suggesting to viewers (and I've met people who seem to accept and adopt this belief) that somehow the lives of celebrities are more important than others and thus of higher value.
In short, it sickens me

5 - When tv news does what it thinks is white, er, I mean, right in covering missing kids and seems to spend an inordinate amount of time on white victims and very little on black victims. I seeded a good piece on this over here and you can read theoriginal piece here:The Lure and Peril of 'Missing White Girl' Syndrome