question of the day: Is there too much music in movies and TV these days?

We had a couple of questions about movie music last week, so while the topic is fresh in our minds, here’s a different angle to consider. Reader Kirk writes:

[A] question arose while I was watching the 4th episode of "Deadwood" with commentary by David Carradine and Molly Parker. David was pointing out the very restrained use of music in the series, and stated his belief that there is far too much use of music to manipulate viewers' emotions in the movies and tv these days. That is, creators are counting on music to inform viewers what emotion they should be feeling rather than letting the actors' words and behavior do it. (I'm paraphrasing from memory of course). It hadn't occurred to me before, as I'm a big fan of movie music and think it's taken far too lightly by most people, but... I think he might be right. Thinking about recent movies I've seen, there's hardly a moment when there isn't some kind of music playing. So... Is there too much music in movies and tv these days?