The Lemon Fool

Watching the news report on BBC this morning and I'm struggling to make out what the reporter is saying. That is not unusual because I'm a deaf old git and use wireless headphones that often require adjustment. So I adjusted 'this and that' until I realised that the reason I couldn't hear the report was because some 'intellectual giant' had decided the report needed background music - some sort of rumbly drumming .
Of course there are sub-titles but they only capture part of the dialogue and are 5~15 seconds delayed from the screen display.
For this rank stupidity we are required to to pay a licence fee.

I don't watch the news but this development might make me change my mind, as long as it wasn't Kate Bush screeching and keening.

Background music ruins so many things. I think its because a) sound editors have excellent hearing b) young people often switch on subtitles anyway. I tend to post a complaint in the comments section and choose a different provider.

Not just news....same could be said for many films and TV dramas.

Probably all very well for sound editors/directors sitting in high tech studio and who already know the dialogue inside out and backwards.

Not so good for (some) of us mere mortals relying on what comes out of our television sets.

I can't watch many of the docs on the minor channels as the background music consists of the 'call of duty' video game soundtrack on repeat.

And slightly off topic - why can't those sound engineers get David Attenborough's voice right on the Planet series. The levels keep on going up and down!

Even if they are recorded in chunks it surely must be straightforward to get the level the same throughout in post production.