Many TV sitcoms still feature canned laughter — and it drives some viewers nuts.
But will NFL games be televised with canned crowd noise?
According to Fox Sports announcer Joe Buck, it’s a possibility.
Buck appeared on Andy Cohen’s SiriusXM radio show earlier this week and addressed that very subject. Stadiums, of course, figure to be empty for a while, due to the coronavirus outbreak and Buck believes something needs to be done to pump up the volume.
“I think Fox and these networks have to put crowd noise under us to make it a normal viewing experience at home,” he said.
Oh, that could be a very bad idea.
“I think whoever’s going to be at that control is going to have to be really good at their job and be realistic with how a crowd would react depending on what just happened on the field, so it’s really important,” Buck added.
The veteran play-by-play man also said that Fox is exploring ways to visually simulate packed stadiums for its broadcasts.
“They’re looking at ways to put virtual fans in the stands, so when you see a wide shot it looks like the stadium is jam-packed and in fact it’ll be empty,” Buck said.
In the Sirius interview, Buck said the piped-in crowd noise concept was “pretty much a done deal.” But today on his Twitter account, he clarified his statements, writing that nothing has been finalized — that everything is up in the air and a work in progress.
Some ideas will work and some won’t. That’s the nature of WORKING on something. It’s uncharted water. It could be a very exciting time in network TV coverage. I can’t wait to see how it all plays out. Praying for a SAFE return to a stadium near you for all involved.
— Joe Buck (@Buck) May 14, 2020
Obviously, it will be weird to watch NFL games — or any major sports — in empty venues. But won’t it be even weirder to watch games knowing there is fakery at play?
Some TV viewers already have been watching events that have been dramatically altered by shelter-in-place mandates. For weeks, WWE and AEW wrestling matches have been televised without roaring, sign-waving fans in the background. And last weekend, UFC 249 was held in an empty arena in Jacksonville, Fla.
This Sunday (May 17), NASCAR will be back in action — at the Darlington Speedway in North Carolina, with no crowd. (Ironically, that event is being televised by Fox).
So what makes the networks and the NFL believe it can’t work for football?
But what do you think? Are canned cheers and CGI fans a good idea?
In addition to its Thursday Night Football match-ups (which start Oct. 8 ), Fox Sports’ NFL Sunday schedule includes at least 98 regular-season games. Fox Sports’ NFL slate is scheduled to kick off with a Tampa Bay Buccaneers-New Orleans Saints match-up on Sunday, Sept. 13.
