Back when I'd sometimes be on group trips rooming with other people, the nails on blackboard thing for me was when the first thing someone would do in a hotel room was turn on the TV. Admittedly, my brother does it at his house as well.
For me background noise is good for mind silence so I think people agree with your end but need different means to get there.
Silence is unnatural. Most of humanity's ancestors grew up in the wilderness that was replete with noises.
There's nature not-silence--or a computer-generated version of same--and there's TV (or even music for the most part). Also tons of sounds in my house even if I don't put something on but mostly want to work without added inputs.
Exactly. Some steady sounds mask the intermittent sounds that are otherwise more interruptive.
A forest on a still night is much quieter than most urban areas.