Free Republic

The losers on “American Idol” have been real winners for Fox. The show continues to earn its highest ratings in its fifth season. The early rounds of the reality singing competition, which feature competitors who can’t hit a note, last night averaged an impressive 15.0 rating among viewers 18-49 for a two-hour episode. That’s a 25 percent increase over the 12.0 last season’s second Tuesday episode earned, and that show was only one hour long. Last night’s episode basically even to the 15.2 overnight rating last week’s season premiere earned, meaning viewers are sticking around. In terms of total viewers,...