Laugh tracks and canned laughter became a familiar part of television comedy across the second half of the 20th century, especially in sitcoms built around clear joke beats. Online, short stock audience laughs were clipped out and reused as a reaction sound in edits, remixes and parody videos. The appeal is simple: a laugh track instantly tells viewers that something is supposed to be funny, which makes it perfect for irony. It is still common in memes because it can make almost any ordinary clip feel absurdly scripted.