Can you hear that frequency?

[ButterflyWoman]

So just turn on the TV and try to ignore it?

I wouldn't meditate with the TV. It's mostly stupid or negative or both. If you really want to use some sort of sound to meditate, there are loads of music options. You want something without words, and you should probably look for something specifically designed for meditation. I don't even like classical music for meditation, because a lot of it is pretty lively and I get into actually listening to it. Meditation music (or music for Reiki) is deliberately on the bland side, while being pleasant to listen to.

Why isn't my thalamus filtering out this constant useless noise?

Your ears are almost unbelievably sensitive. When there is no louder or more important sound to listen to, your brain starts listening to the sound of the blood rushing in your ears and other minute noises. Studies with people in soundproof rooms have shown that in the absence of other noise, people can actually hear air circulating (as in, the molecules) and the sound of dust particles moving around and all kinds of "microscopic" sound. The thing where you "tune out" some sounds is a matter of focus, and if there's nothing more significant to focus on, your brain starts to focus on smaller and smaller sounds, and some of them are pretty weird.