# Who do they poll for Family Feud? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 26, 2010, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084 "2010-07-26T18:48:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![PSXer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/48db29/32.png) [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/1 "2010-07-26T18:48:01Z")
my friend wants to know ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/2 "2010-07-26T18:57:18Z")
Just a WAG, but I’d guess they poll their studio audience, or other audiences in the studio next door or down the hall. If they can count the people going in to make sure that they have 100 people, then they’ve got the number they need. Before the show starts, a few minutes spent asking questions and collecting responses is probably what happens. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/3 "2010-07-26T19:06:04Z")
I’d guess a bunch of white lower middle-class people, from the answers. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/4 "2010-07-26T19:29:01Z")
Sometimes it’s “100 people”, but sometimes, it’s “100 men”, or “100 women”. So there have to be at least 200 people in the total sample. ---
**Author:** ![Shawn1767](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Shawn1767](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shawn1767)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/5 "2010-07-26T19:32:58Z")
Also, when playing the Feud, I have to remind people that it’s not necessarily a factual answer that will be on the board. The board merely reflects what 100 average people would say. I remember seeing somewhere here on the Dope that someone was complaining that “Benjamin Franklin” was listed as one of the Presidents on Family Feud. Well, don’t blame the producers, blame the people that were surveyed. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/6 "2010-07-26T19:37:23Z")
> [@](#): > > Just a WAG, but I’d guess they poll their studio audience, or other audiences in the studio next door or down the hall. They don’t poll their studio audience. Or, at any rate, they don’t poll _all_ studio audiences. I attended a taping back in 1980, and was very surprised that we weren’t polled. And **Shawn** is right, as I’ve mentioned on this Board before. It’s for that reason that the Feuid generally avoids factual questions, although occasionally something ewill slip through – like the time they asked for “A Country in South America”, and one of the answers was “Rio de Janeiro” ---
**Author:** ![PSXer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/48db29/32.png) [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/7 "2010-07-26T19:54:49Z")
Name the animal that eats the most food. No one said whale. Come on guys that’s gotta be the right answer. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/8 "2010-07-26T20:02:43Z")
It’s a show for the lowest common denominator. You don’t have to be right, you just have to be _mainstream._ “Great Sailing Cultures” didn’t even mention the Polynesians. ---
**Author:** ![PSXer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/48db29/32.png) [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/9 "2010-07-26T20:05:24Z")
just because not everyone is as smart as you doesn’t mean it’s lowest common denominator. I am tired as heck of everyone mocking the TV shows I like. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/10 "2010-07-26T20:09:57Z")
You’re the one who just complained that the answers are often wrong! ---
**Author:** ![PSXer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/48db29/32.png) [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/11 "2010-07-26T20:10:56Z")
that was just one time. I think on the whole they are pretty good ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/12 "2010-07-26T20:18:40Z")
> [@PSXer](#): > > Name the animal that eats the most food. > > No one said whale. Come on guys that’s gotta be the right answer. Not necessarily. They’re big, but they also don’t have to expend a lot of energy. They float effortlessly, and don’t move particularly fast most of the time. They don’t have to chase down prey (I’m talking about the big filter-feeders here), and being in water and carrying all that blubber, temperature regulation shouldn’t be that difficult. I don’t know what the right answer is - it may be whales for all I know - but I can pull an argument out of my ass as to why they might not be it. ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/13 "2010-07-26T20:20:36Z")
Judging by some of the answers, I always thought they must have been going along talking to the same people from Jay Leno’s ‘Jaywalking’.’ ---
**Author:** ![PSXer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/48db29/32.png) [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/14 "2010-07-26T20:26:42Z")
but in Star Trek IV they say they have to feed the whales a couple tons of shrimp every day Would Star Trek be wrong? ---
**Author:** ![SmellMyWort](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SmellMyWort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmellMyWort)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/15 "2010-07-26T20:37:00Z")
> [@PSXer](#): > > my friend wants to know > [@PSXer](#): > > I am tired as heck of everyone mocking the TV shows I like. Busted! ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/16 "2010-07-26T20:38:30Z")
How could they not put Tribble as the number one answer? It’s so obvious. ---
**Author:** ![PSXer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/48db29/32.png) [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/17 "2010-07-26T20:40:29Z")
I and my friend are both fans of Family Feud ---
**Author:** ![Rebo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rebo/32/13005_2.png) [@Rebo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rebo)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/18 "2010-07-26T20:43:54Z")
I like the Feud, too. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/19 "2010-07-26T21:07:06Z")
> [@Rebo](#): > > I like the Feud, too. And anyone questioning the televised version should check out the sample group you work with. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2021, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084/21 "2021-05-23T22:27:54Z")
> [@PSXer](#): > > Just because not everyone is as smart as you doesn’t mean it’s lowest common denominator. “Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.” _—George Carlin_ [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-they-poll-for-family-feud/548084.md?page=2)