Interactive television (narrative technique)

Interactive television or interactive TV, sometimes also called pseudo-interactive television to distinguish it from technologically enabled interactive television, is a narrative technique used in television programs to give the viewing audience the impression that they can interact with the on-screen characters, while in actuality they cannot. This narrative technique is often used in children's television. It is a simulated form of audience participation. When employed, characters will often break the fourth wall and ask the viewers to give them advice or the solution to a problem. Characters typically provide a short period of time for the viewers to react, and then proceed as though the viewers have given them the correct answer.