Many times two things might look the same yet be very different when looked at more closely. This is true of a
parody documentary that looks like a real show with truthful information but is not anywhere near the real thing. This is why it is important for television viewers to know the difference so that they will not take the show meant for humor too seriously.
A show that is informative is usually based on facts. The research that has been done before hand should be thorough and the right people contacted in order to get different sides of the story. Due to the serious nature of the show, the viewers tend to take things very seriously. They usually believe that what is presented is the truth.
Now this depends on further evidence that one might come in contact with. If someone with authority makes a claim that the information presented was false, then most people will look to that authority. On the other hand, there are some people who are not easily convinced about anything, even though it might be presented by a media company that is considered legitimate.
On the other hand, those creating a satirical show spend more time studying the program that was presenting the real story. They do not do their own research or spend time getting factual or truthful information. They study how the show was put together, how the interviews were done, and how the information was received by the audience.
Humor is one of the main tools that is used in these programs. Yet, just because something is funny does not necessarily mean that there is no ounce of truth to it. Many times humor is used to show how ridiculous the real show was or to point out certain flaws in thinking that would otherwise go unnoticed. If this was done in a serious manner, some people might be too sensitive to the alternative.
Others are not so forgiving, however, because they might be the type to take everything seriously. So if someone is presenting on a show that resembles their favorite program which typically presents truthful stories, they might easily get offended. They may not understand why a person would see the joke in something they have taken seriously.
Yet, on a serious note, it takes a serious amount of work to present these satirical shows. One has to be able to see things from various points of view and this is not easy for many people to do. The creators of these shows also have to look for things within the real show that can be exaggerated to the point of being silly which can also be a challenge.
This means they have to know the material they are working with. It takes a talented individual to create something that looks like the real thing but yet is different in so many ways. This is what causes so many people around the world to be amazed at what they see and entertained at the same time.