Inappropriate Memoriam

I don't understand why, when the "In Memoriam" segment is aired during the Golden Globes, Emmys, SAG awards, or Oscars, the audience is allowed to clap for each dead celebrity. Couldn't they tell the audience to hold their applause until the very end? The Clap-O-Meter is sort of inappropriate. What judges who gets the most applause? How does Joe Cinamatographer feel up there in Heaven when he gets less applause than the rousing claps and hollers for John McSuperCelebrity?

Also, during the SAG awards tonight, I learned that the man who voiced the Jolly Green Giant died in the past year. When they first showed the clip, though, it was from the actual commercial, and my first thought was "Oh my God, the GREEN GIANT died?!"