Posted on 05/25/2006 8:11:21 AM PDT by SirLinksalot
Not quite the same thing...the people who appeared on those shows had some talent.
Who has time to read and post to threads about topics for which they claim to have no time?
If I really thought I was above watching AI I'd certainly not waste my time reading AI threads! That said...I'm glad that Taylor won if Elliot couldn't.
That's probably because, like myself, you are not a part of this increasingly fanatical pop culture society.
I've never seen a single episode of Idol or any other reality type show. As a matter of fact, I barely watch TV.
But I heard a couple of morning show radio guys discussing last nights Idol show and they said that more people voted as part of the show than have ever voted for any presidential candidate.
At first I thought, "What a shame." But then, on further analysis, I concluded that most of these Idol zombies are probably libs anyway and that it is better for the conservative movement that these mental midgets spend time voting for celebrity wannabees than casting votes in a political contest.
No problem with liking the show.
No problem with saying one's tired of
the hoopla over the show.
Bridget HAS to be very young since
she coyly tells us her passion for
selecting romantic escapes via DVD's
after work! And that's ok, too. But
for Lord's Sake, DON'T tell the world
you are a "political columnist" by
profession and expect to be taken
seriously in your chosen career!
This is the first season I really watched AI, and voted. Right now I'm just happy that it's over, and I can go on with my life.
Reading and commenting on such inane activity takes about 60 secs. Watching it robs countless hours of life.
"starry-eyed fame-seekers"
What about the 10s of millions of starry-eyed fame watchers? All of those people who are fascinated with hollywood, moviestars, american idol, musicians etc. Its sad how people are so star struck but cant be active for their community or their country. What makes you idolize an actor or musician, i.e a liberal in the first place?
Why Middle America loves Taylor
May 25, 2006. 08:19 AM
VINAY MENON
TELEVISION CRITIC
TORONTO STAR
A year ago, nobody would have used the word "Idol" to describe Taylor Hicks.
But last night, the barmy, silver-haired singer prone to ill-advised boogieing and Rain Man sloganeering — "Soul Patrol! Soul Patrol! Soul Patrol!" — emerged victorious on the TV phenomenon known as American Idol.
As predicted by pollsters and bookies and people with too much time on their hands, Taylor, who hails like three of the previous four winners from the U.S. South, vanquished California rival Katharine McPhee after earning a majority of the 63.4 million votes cast Tuesday night.
With his penchant for corny quips and gaudy blazers, the prematurely grey Taylor — he's 29 going on 46 — may look more like an intoxicated wedding singer than a newly minted pop star.
No matter. At precisely 9:58 p.m. last night, the future arc of his ribs-and-catfish life was forever changed when host Ryan Seacrest said: "Now, America and the world, it is the moment of truth ... the winner of American Idol Season 5 is ... Taylor Hicks!"
Taylor whooped. His hometown of Birmingham, Ala., erupted on a monitor. And Katharine, the 22-year-old chanteuse and daughter of a vocal coach, hugged him graciously, though disappointment glistened in her eyes.
Yes, after nearly two hours of truly bizarre duets, colour-co-ordinated ensembles, taped segments, musical infomercials, bad comedy, live remotes, unrestrained mocking of Idol rejects, all-around filler — and a surprise performance by Prince — Taylor had defeated Katharine under a cloud of confetti.
So the analysis will begin this morning. Why did he win?
The reason is simple: American Idol is not a singing competition, as we're constantly told, but a popularity contest.
And since it's on television, sight matters as much as sound. If this was a radio show, last night's finale would have undoubtedly featured Chris Daughtry and Paris Bennett. But from the outset, Taylor was the most visually engaging contestant: odd, mesmerizing, peculiar, endearing.
He wasn't like anyone we had seen before.
The victory of Alabama's new favourite son will also come as no surprise to demographers given the origins of previous winners — Kelly Clarkson (Texas); Ruben Studdard (Alabama); Fantasia Barrino (North Carolina); and Carrie Underwood (Oklahoma).
While George W. Bush has occupied the White House, every Idol champ has hailed from a so-called Red State. And eight of the 10 finalists (winner and runner-up) have come from the South and Midwest.
How popular is the show in Dixie? Consider this: at times this season, nearly 50 per cent of every television set in Taylor's hometown of Birmingham was tuned to American Idol. Viewers in Red States also seem more likely to support their local contestants than those in Blue States, as was obvious last week when Taylor and Katharine were shown mingling in their communities.
The crowd that greeted Taylor was massive and boisterous and deafening. Katharine's supporters, by contrast, were decidedly more reserved. And last night? The only live remotes came from Alabama. So much for California Dreamin'.
If regional voting habits can be extrapolated from all this, nobody should be surprised by Taylor's win.
Though two previous girl-guy showdowns ended with female champs, with Katharine residing in Sherman Oaks, Calif., well, the poor thing never stood a chance.
This season was, by any measure, an extraordinary success. The juggernaut averaged 30 million viewers per week, up 14 per cent from 2005. (In Canada, Tuesday's penultimate episode drew more than 3.1 million viewers.)
Throughout the winter, American Idol obliterated everything in its path — from the Grammy Awards to the Olympics. And for the second consecutive season, it catapulted Fox into the No. 1 spot with viewers 18-49, the demographic coveted by advertisers. As such, Fox was charging $1.3 million (U.S.) for a 30-second spot on last night's finale.
According to Variety, movie studios were also mesmerized by Idol this year, spending more than $56 million on film ads — or more than was spent on Lost, 24 and Grey's Anatomy combined.
The buzz wasn't restricted to North America. American Idol is now licensed in 154 countries. Viewers across the planet — from India to Israel, Iceland to Malaysia — followed the contest that ended with Taylor's glitzy coronation.
The Idol contagion has spread across the globe like a warbling epidemic. A new season of Canadian Idol begins Monday, while other homegrown versions are now produced in 34 countries.
The Idol brand is estimated to be worth more than $1 billion. And, collectively, more than 1.7 billion votes have been cast for Idol shows, or roughly 1 vote for every four people on the planet.
How confident and cocky is the show? Last night, it bestowed fake awards — The Golden Idols — on itself, Oscar-style.
The two-hour finale started with the Top 12 Idols performing with fourth season winner Carrie Underwood. They took the stage garbed in white, looking like an invading army of photogenic extraterrestrials.
The show was broadcast live from the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, where 3,000 screaming fans — including many slightly embarrassed celebrities — were joined by a global television audience estimated to be more than 200 million.
And, for those with McPheever, don't cry for Katharine. She seems to understand the show's extensive, star-making apparatus.
As she said recently: "It is still a competition, but we both have won. We both have record deals and will be getting the same amount of press."
Ah, spoken like a true Idol.
Maybe Fox can replace "So You Think You Can Dance? 2" with "Canadian Idol". I bet it would be a smart move, especially for those of us who are going to go through Live Thread withdrawls...
On my list of shows to avoid, Idol is high on the list.
The first time I saw it (the babysitter had it on when we returned to some friends' house after dinner), I had to ask if it was real, or contrived like big time wrestling. I figured they couldn't have possibly made it so lame and tasteless without rigging it. I was wrong!
USA TODAY
'Idol' worship
Posted 5/24/2006 10:35 PM ET
WHY IS AMERICAN IDOL SO POPULAR ?
Television, it is often said, has never been the same since the arrival of cable, satellite and the Internet. Audiences are more fragmented and shows are more targeted, making it hard for the medium to serve as the electronic public square that it once did.
Apparently, no one has told that to the producers of American Idol. Nearly 32 million households were tuned to the show Tuesday night to watch this year's two finalists, Taylor Hicks and Katharine McPhee, perform three songs each. Similar numbers likely watched Wednesday night when Hicks was anointed the winner. What's more, Idol's audience is growing from year to year, which is unusual for so-called reality shows that often lose viewers once their novelty wears off.
Idol might be today's equivalent to The Ed Sullivan Show, which from 1948 to '71 was must-watch fare for families around the country. Like the Sullivan show, Idol attracts huge audiences and helps launch careers. And like the Sullivan show, it's something that people of differing races, genders and generations can share.
At the risk of sounding overly effusive toward television, which is consumed in far too abundant quantities, there is a valuable function in a show like this. It has no objectionable content, no snakes or leeches, no contrived spontaneity and no Donald Trump.
Perhaps the show's success is the result of its simple concept. Virtually anyone can try out. It has a host and three judges, who select winners in the early rounds. In the later rounds, the judges merely opine while the winners are selected by millions of people who vote, often more than once, with telephones and wireless gizmos.
Or perhaps Idol's success is in how it encapsulates so much of American culture. It delivers instant celebrity, the ultimate dream in a nation of dreamers. And it almost perfectly mimics, or perhaps spoofs, the U.S. political system — with its drawn-out campaigns, its imperfect elections, its annoying commentators.
American Idol's success proves that the nation can still be brought together by a TV show. At a time of contentious political and cultural division, it's a useful reminder that Americans still share common bonds
Spot on analysis. What might appear to be red-vs-blue state activity might really be people who love music, like me, finding access to music/musicians on TV that isn't MTV or similar filth.
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