to think that talk radio rots your brain less than (pop) music radio?

[Lottapianos]

Despite being a lentil-munching feminist leftie, I regularly listen to LBC 97.3, which is full of right-wing loonies bellyaching about Europe, immigration, the good old days, feral youth and other bring-back-the-birch-Daily-Mail type stuff. I also have been known to listen to Jeremy Vine on Radio 2, a show which was beautifully described by another MN-er as 'the Daily Mail in audio format'. I don't know why I enjoy this rubbish but I do. My DP tells me that if you listen to all this tub-thumping stuff for long enough, you end up agreeing with that point of view. I disagree with him but feel that on balance there are probably much healthier things to listen to but my ears want what they want

In the office I work in, the radio station of choice is HeartFM. I have found recently that I get far more wound up by the lyrics of the songs they play, most of which are about sex, cheating, getting naked, more sex, what the singer wants to do to someone else or utterly moronic drivel like the muppet who is 'lookin' for somethin' dumb ta do, hey baby, I think I wanna marry you'. I can feel my brain turning to mush as we speak

I'm really not an old gimmer or a prude but honestly, this constant stream of rubbish can't do anyone any good At least with talk radio, you occasionally get to hear some interesting and thought-provoking opinions, or get to laugh at the more swivel-eyed contributions

What sort of drivel do you watch/listen to, by choice or otherwise?

In one way i think that it is good to hear opposite opinions to your own, i bit like 'know your enemy'.

I was very shocked a few years ago when i mixed in a different group,how many younger people can be racist, i honestly thought that it was an 'older' thing. I don't mean, the 'stop immigration' views, but that some people were less than human, because of their background.

We put CD's on, tbh, it saves everyone blood pressure and arguements.

Ah, CDs - got to be the way forward! I like the spontaneity of radio though, you don't know what you're going to hear next, which keeps life interesting

Oh yes, definitely find bigoted people in all walks of life.

I agree about the inane lyrics of todays music (old gimmer emoticon) I was watching reggae Britain the other night reliving some of my youth and commented to DH that in those days music had meaningful / political lyrics a lot of the time, now its all about sex.

Talk radio is my preference but less to do with the brain rot (or not) simply because I like to listen to my own music choices. I find unwanted music much more intrusive than voices (apart from Libby Purves who makes me want to scratch my ears off... ) so I will listen to my music or an audio book or have R4 on. I also enjoy shouting at politicians or annoying hectoring interviewers on Today/ PM - it is very satisfying, There is also the opportunity to add your own voice to the mix (You & Yours and Any Answers Veteran here).

Cds are so not the way forward! mp3's and internet radio! [gimmers emoticon needed]

'I also enjoy shouting at politicians or annoying hectoring interviewers on Today/ PM - it is very satisfying'

Yes yes yes to shouting at the radio/TV! It's sooooo therapeutic. DP looks at me like this , I don't care, I'm sure it's an endearing quirk really

YABU to think that either rots your brain

BusinessTrills, I am currently listening to my fifth Olly Murs song of the day. That's five more than I wanted to hear. My brain is definitely not in the same state it was this morning

Radio 4 all the way apart from a bit of music radio at breakfast time. It used to be Radio 2 in the mornings until that idiot Evans replaced my hero Terry.

We leave R4 playing all night in the kitchen so the dog can improve her mind too.

'We leave R4 playing all night in the kitchen so the dog can improve her mind too'

Agree that Evans is a twit

I've been listening to LBC for 30 years and my brain is less rotted than it would be after 30 years of Capital. I also like to choose my own music.

Oh sweet heavens, Capital brings on a migraine.

Who's your favourite LBC presenter Gwendoline? And who makes you shout at the radio the most?

R4 doesn't merely 'rot your brain less' - quite often it actually feeds it something worthwhile.

5live is better for me than Radio2 although I cannot stand Victoria Derbyshire.

Yanbu. I cant stand heart fm, radio one is not much better but at least it plays a better variety of music. Dont know about radio 2 but ive always liked listening to the plays on radio 4 and I quite like world service in the early hours.

Ds aged twelve recently surprised me by admitting he listens to radio 4 and world service if he cant sleep at night.

My dad's been reading the Torygraph for decades, despite being a general leftie and specific dyed-in-the-wool 60s-style teacher (anti national curriculum, SATS, national standards etc).

He claims that it's because it has good sports coverage and, more plausibly, that he likes shouting at it.

I don't find Heart mind-rotting for the same reasons as you, OP, but it IS mind-rotting in its middle-of-the-roadness. And I agree with the know-your-enemy philosophy, although I can't listen to right-wing bullshit for too long or my blood pressure gets dangerous.

Radio 4 and 5Live all the way here, or (rarely) my own music. Can't stand music radio. DH puts on Radio 2 and 6music, which admittedly are probably amongst the best of the bunch but still make my teeth hurt, especially all the chummy chatting on Radio 2.

I find background music not of my own choice very irritating, but will quite happily have a talk radio station on all day in the background, even if I am a bit out of earshot, just like the sound.

I think I have found an ally in DS, DH has just gone away for a couple of days and DS's first reaction was hooray, no more of Daddy's music.

x-posted with Sugarice - I can't stand Victoria D either, or Nicky Campbell, but they do have some thought provoking phone-ins.

Kiss fm is utterly stupefying, i really cannot stand it. BBC Essex is similar but plays to a different demographic.

I enjoy listening to Nick Ferrari on LBC - it is like the Daily Mail comments section in audio! He does challenge the more idiotic callers though.

Hate hate talk radio. Also can't stand audio books and radio plays. Have (really quite mild on the scale of these things!) hearing loss so it's like hearing half a conversation. Especially if I am concentrating on something else, which hopefully you are at work! Very irritating.

Music just washes over. It's a bugbear of mine that there aren't really any music only stations.

We have to sit through Classic FM at work and it totally does my and everyone else's head in. Don't get me wrong, I do appreciate a bit of naice music every now and then, but all day every day of mostly 'heavy' and quite frankly depressing music is a bit much. We're not allowed to turn it down either!

Can't stand the chuntering on and on and then "Margaret from Kent" calling in to moan about speed bumps oh god make it stop. Talk and music and lighthearted is okay but anything droning on drives me nuts.

YANBU. Another Radio 4-phile here. Alternate being GRIPPED by thrillers like My One and Only (all about an obsessive stalker and if you missed it, have a listen) and then CALM like a mill-pond on tranx listening to the Shipping Forecast.

Radio 4 has been with me my whole life. It's inspired me, calmed me and kept me sane! I know it so well that I actually sort of plan my day by where I'm at in the schedule. So for instance, if the DCs are not finished breakfast by the end of 'Thought for the Day' I know we have to step on it.

I find some of the quizzes direly boring and some of the 6.30 comedy toe curling but in an odd way quite like that I'm having to listen to something I wouldn't choose otherwise.

I defected to LBC on Saturday night once and was horrified! Perhaps it was the wrong time of day. I do quite enjoy it in a cab though, as all cabbies seem to listen to 5 live or LBC.

We love 6 Music too though, except for the presenters who are vacuous. That does not include Stuart Maconie or Steve Lamaq. The Freak Zone on a Sunday early evening is sometimes hilarious, sometimes interesting treat.

I LOVE radio.

If you live in London area listen to Vanessa Feltz on bbc radio London , she is brill and I agree with most of her views.m