I like to listen to all news radio on my 45-minute morning commute. There isn't a lot of options for it here—either the public broadcaster or the cell-phone company-owned carbon copy of 680 News in Toronto.

My beef is with the advertisements on the latter. They are so annoying. Anastasia from a certain hippy pharmacy's voice makes me cringe. And why does every commercial have the same format (a terrible announcer doing a lead-in, posing a question out loud then the proprietor of the establishment, who has no business being on the radio, answering said question with way more information than a normal answer would have and throwing in some extra advice for shits). Of course, the stainless steel barbecue you sell would be the superior product, you're making money off of it. Don't pretend to be giving some worldly advice about the quality of stainless steel as if you're some fucking expert. You sell them, of course you will want us to think your stainless steel is some how better than that which costs half the price at a big box store.

I also hate their sports advertisements. Every five minutes, they have some screeching baseball announcer clip announcing a home run by Edwin Encarnation from some baseball game of past. Hurm, oh right, you also own that team, so of course you would advertise their games. Who the fuck listens to baseball games on the radio 2,500km away anyway?

Another thing—is some hardware broken at your station that regulates volume? The commercials and live announcers are OK volume, then you cut out to an interview or clip and its so quiet I have to put the knob up on bust to hear it, then it cuts back to the announcer at normal volume and it fucking deafens me. Is it that hard to play the clips at the same volume that your mics are set at?

Finally, the traffic reports. Since you are a carbon copy of 680 News, which boasts traffic and weather together on the 1s, why is it that you only do traffic and weather on the 1s for two or three hours? I would like to hear the traffic at other times too you know? God, what a shit show this is.

Too bad there isn't an alternative for live news here. The public broadcaster is unbearable at most times for another bitch-worth of reasons. Sigh. -Snooze 957