Why do American TV audiences make "whooping" noises??

Question

I was recently watching a documentary on TV and this American gentleman was building himself a "real fine custom motorcycle"(yawn). He said "I can't wait to see the audience's reaction when I wheel THIS into the arena".....

Well, I for one correctly predicted the audience's reaction- they started howling and whooping like baboons.

This is an interesting cultural phenomenon because European audiences certainly DON'T whoop. Does anyone know the origin and purpose of this howling and whooping, and when it started? Am I right in thinking it only started in the mid- eighties?

Answer 1

As an american who "whooops like a baboon" at every possibility, allow me to share some light on the subject.

In my ever-so-foreign, backwards nation of cowboys and baseball, the whooping is a way of showing appreciation or support of a performer. It's a way of getting involved in the action. How would a comic know if the audience thought he was funny if he didn't have their raw reaction to guide him? Just do the material and judge later? So static, so uninteresting. If you're tanking, change the subject until you get whoops.

In addition to being involved in the action, it's a way to get more fulfillment out of a moment. Mindless self restraint, while appropriate in many cases, is not why people pay lots of money to be in a live audience. They do it for the experience, which is not passive like watching it on a TV. They could've done that from home.

And as an annex to this question, let me ask another: What is the ettiquette for gathering on a forum to insult the cultural ways of another country? Seems to me a board like this would be used to eliminate ethnocentrism, not to isolate cultures and judge them harshly by suggesting that the entire culture is addicted to crack or is "uncouth."

Answer 2

pretty good. Yes in the past most audiences were at the mercy of the audience manager...akin to an usher with power. For the sake of the home viewers audience members were told not to interrupt the filming production with unnessary noise and completed the structured rule-ness with electric signs that even told the audience when to applaud. In some instances the audience was paid as if to be extras.....and even more producers and managers charged audiences for seats like in theatre. Regardless, it was a priveledge to be allowed to watch a program being filmed.

However in the 80's the Arsenio Hall Show premiered. Which basically was a comic who instituted a gimic that caught on to the new audiences wanting to jump up and down and well honoestly be uncouth. Thatw as the "whoop". If you liked something you let him know by "whooping loud enough to be heard from the boommics and television recording mics, there was also an accompanying circular fist motion that went with the "whoop" in rhythm. Believe it or not it made Arsenio feel a little more comfortable and at ease having an audience respond to his comic material as if he was preforming in a club.

There were other shows before The Arsenio Hall Show that allowed the audience to "go wild", but Arsenio Hall is accreditted for the major move because of the specific wildness that was , at the time, associated only with his show.

Basically, to answer your question....as the America pop culture downgraded off cocaine to crack, the public person became rambunctious and rebellious. Their actions were well liked by the rating systems which only responded in statistics showing the producers were making their money back and then some and the behavior was allowed to continue.....even encouraged. Now it is such a staple of what to do, that there is no way to turn the habits around.

Answer 3

On the Arsenio Hall show, audience members would make a dog-like "whoo whoo" noise. I can't spell it, it has to be heard. In general, when we are cheering for something, oftentimes we'll make a "wooooo!!!!!" sound. It's just a custom, don't know where it came from. It's like when Mexican singers do "El Grito" when they're really into the song they're singing, or when Arabian women make that <<>> noise at weddings, it sort of sounds like a police whistle.

All of these examples are passionate noises people make when they're overcome with excitement, that's the best I can explain it.

Answer 4

No, they've been prompting audiences to react since the very beginning of television. I'm thinking the whooping and stuff comes more from the 70s with rock concerts and the like.

Answer 5

The noises you refer to are just the same as our whistles and shouts, and people make other noises as well because they are prompted with cue cards, and you refer to the mid-eighties, i think it was the late seventies when it started ! before that audiences were much more polite and all they would do was laugh when there was something to laugh about, and talking about laughter, if there is a comedy on, specially American, i really hate canned laughter !!! and will turn over or switch off.

Answer 6

There is a sign that says applause and flashes when the studio wants a reaction , or laughter but I believe the whooping comes from sports fans, young ones naturally, trying to be louder then the next guy

Answer 7

It started on the Arsenio Hall show in the 80's.

Answer 8

takes the place of continued clapping as American always do for instance if a singer is about to start a song he's made famous after the first few notes clapping occurs and you miss the first verse completely

Answer 9

It was The Arsenio Hall Show that started the nonsense

Answer 10

you noticed that everytime an audience on TRL gives out a shout out, they go "whoooooooooo!!!!!!" at the end? why is that?

really, i've been on television before (for audience stuff) and i never once had that urge to do it. it just seem so stupid and lame.

i guess people do it because they want the camera attention.