Step 1. Buy or own a phone with a built-in infrared transmitter.
My preferred choice, at the moment, is a Samsung Galaxy S5, which has a removable battery, support for the newest version of Android (Pie) via LineageOS, and can be bought from eBay for <$100.
Step 2. Install TV Kill.
The app sequentially goes through the off codes of all major TV models. It even has a mode to keep cycling repeatedly through the codes until you stop it.
Enjoy the silence, and you’re welcome.
cafebedouin.org 
As I said not a techie…. I would love to be able to control all the ‘noise’ though in public spaces especially as you point out, news that bombards us 24/7….there are probably hundreds of apps out there that I would be surprised by. Robot buddhists, controlling noise in public spaces….never know what I will learn next by reading your blog and have little bits of info to impress when there is a lull in the conversation.:)
đŸ™‚ So…..it is like ‘power in your pocket’ it would work wonders until there were a number of people with the app that got into a ‘power’ struggle….. might be fun to watch.:)
No power struggle, just a TV that is off. If every does it, there would be less incentive to put TVs in public spaces. Of course the technical solution is to block remote control and require manual control of the TV.
But, people won’t do unless it is happening a lot. It’s too much of an inconvenience.
OK so I am confused….if you lived in an apartment building would you be able to turn other peoples TV’s off? I am not a technical person (I do try mind you) I am not too sure why someone would want to have this……? if you have many people in the same house so you can control the TV?
What am I missing?
It’s just like your remote. It’s light and needs to be in line of sight to the TV. The reason it is useful is that there are a lot of places in the United States where people turn a TV in a public dining, waiting area, etc., to a channel other people don’t want to watch. This app gives everyone the veto power in their pocket. No need to talk to an employee and be told that having Fox News on all day long is management policy. As a customer, I obviously would prefer to not eat in place with annoying “entertainment”, but we don’t always know what we are in for when we decide to eat some place or have a choice. This, at least, provides an alternative option, for as long as the person using the app is there.