patrick.net

Nathan Jones

When I was in the WWE, saw something that stuck with
me...not in the ring, but backstage.

There'd be a wrestler they were trying to "put over,"
someone the crowd just wasn't vibing with. You'd hear
boos from the audience, or worse... dead silence. No
reaction. And that's death in wrestling.

So what did WWE do?

They'd pump in crowd noise. Literal cheers through the
arena speakers. Sometimes even piped-in chants like
"Rocky! Rocky!" for someone the crowd clearly didn't
care for. And then I'd watch, from the monitors backstage,
as the real audience started to fall in line. Like that fake
reaction gave them permission to cheer. And they did.
That's when it hit me…most people don't think with their
own mind. They follow the noise.

And now, I see the same trick everywhere. In politics. On
the news. On social media. They play the cheer track, and
the crowd claps like trained seals. Manufactured
consensus. Emotional manipulation wrapped in spectacle.
It worked in wrestling. It works even better in real life.

WWE

I think there was also some legal reason for calling wresting entertainment and not a sport.