Sharp-Eyed Viewers Catch Fox's 'MasterChef' Faking a Huge Crowd
 

http://tv.yahoo.com/blog/sharpeyed-v...ge-crowd--3229

I couldn't resist posting this; I am not a big fan of "reality" programming and really enjoy when they get caught in their fakery. The fact that it comes from the "fair and balanced" and "accurate" Fox Television makes it all the more funny. Perhaps they meant this to be an episode of their primetime show "Lie To Me"?...

:har:

The crowd is just about as real as all the reality shows themselves are. :haha:
Fake crowds for fake shows.

Magic

Nothing new, just visual rather than audible. Sitcoms used to be shot in front of a live audience. Then when people didn't laugh at the appropriate places they began to "sweeten" the soundtrack after the fact. It finally got to a point where you would see scenes that were obviously filmed outdoors but the laugh track would still be there. Fakery is a tried-and-true fallback for "improving" television.

The laugh track has been used not just to sweeten but to replace audience reactions. The sitcom "Barney Miller" started out being taped before a live audience, but the actors, the majority of whom were stage actors (some from Broadway) strangely felt uncomfortable performing in front of the audience. After the series started, the audience was eliminated, the actors performed on a closed set in an otherwise empty studio, and a laugh track machine was used to provide the reactions.

Appraisal of 1953 "Laff Box" on "Antiques Roadshow":

http://video.pbs.org/video/1754622115/

Demonstration of a "Laff Box":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMmWzyHFyK0

History of the "Laugh Track"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laugh_track


The more time goes on, the more it seems reality is relative...

I tried adding extra visuals with the Wife once.
She added a laugh track.
:nope:

:har: After what I saw in Houston a couple of years ago I'm not surprised.

"My girlfriend always laughs during sex—no matter what she's reading."

(Steve Jobs)

The laugh track didn't bother me as much as her asking me to
'Talk with an accent like Jim or Grant!'
:o