Instead, there's endless – that's how it comes across – peddlering; i.e., 15 minutes straight of "plugs" interrupted by 10 minutes of talk. Some of this is understandable in that plugs pay the bills. But there comes a point when the plugs so dominate the talk that it becomes increasingly difficult to listen to any of it.

Often, it is quite literally impossible – because the plugs take so much time that by the time you get to where you were headed (most people listen to talk radio in their cars, while driving someplace) there's no more time to listen because you're already there. I've had whole trips from my house to downtown – a trip of some 30 miles – go by with almost nothing but plugs emanating from the speakers, punctuated by teasers about what you'll hear if you stay tuned through all the plugs.