Tweaking The Laugh Track: The Ethics Of Orchestrated Responses

I know little about diplomacy, but I do know media manipulation…

So when I received an invitation to write for USC’s Public Diplomacy Magazine (a surprise and an honor), I decided to address a growing malpractice: faking audience reactions.

In Public Diplomacy Issue 23, “Ethics In Diplomacy,” my article starts by addressing laugh tracks in TV sitcoms: the fake laughter that makes me cringe. Then I focus on a modern variation of the laugh track: what many people call “influencer marketing.”

Let me know what you think. And, no, you don’t have to be diplomatic.