re: Laughing as part of audio on TV shows (laugh tracks, studio audiences)

laugh tracks come from the "dumb people" thing in the other thread. right or not, executives think that the masses don't know when to laugh, or where the jokes are. this is usually true, because with laugh track shows the jokes are readily apparent, but not good.

sitcoms that use laugh tracks...well they're dinosaurs...which is why they're all on CBS which is watched by dinosaurs. you can't really fault "live shows" (Colbert/Stewart, the late night shows, talk shows, etc) for a random person in the audience with a bad laugh.

i can't even imagine laugh tracks in movies...remember, film makers believe themselves superior to television in every single way.