get a load of those commercials

the yearly viewers are sick of commercials piece rolled out, this time by usatoday

But across prime-time TV, the number of ads and promos has increased sharply over the years. A typical “one-hour” prime-time series clocks in at less than 42 minutes, down from 44 minutes several years ago and nearly 48 minutes in the 1980s.
And shaving off the “previously on …” recap, opening credits and a teaser for next week's episode, Sunday's Housewives ran 40 minutes and 30 seconds, meaning for every two minutes of programming, there's a minute of commercials or promos for other network shows. On cable, MTV has even more so-called clutter, with USA and Lifetime close behind.

the article mentions some 'tricks' network execs do to get viewers more likely view ads and stay with their channel.

in any case, i suggest tivo...or maybe the crippled-pvr offering from your cable company.