As Executive producer of this drivel, Simon Cowles is grousing and crtiquing shallow talent all the way to the bank! It's a tradgedy of comic proportions that America's illiterate, ignorant, television-viewing masses continue to watch this crap under the delusional justification that it's "Entertaining"...it's not. It's sad. Sad commentary on the desperate 'performers' and even sadder commentary on the mush-minded TV viewing public.

I'm a bit confused, which contestant are we talking about? The juggler? The "odd" looking guy? His friend? Just curious.

"I'm a bit confused, which contestant are we talking about? The juggler? The "odd" looking guy? His friend? "

All of them, I think.

I guess I'm lucky. I've never wasted my time on any of this drivel.

"Sad commentary on the desperate 'performers' and even sadder commentary on the mush-minded TV viewing public."

The dumbing down of America is reaching ridiculous levels, and Fox is at the forefront. It's creating a nation of un-thinking FoxHeads -- that giggle and gasp, right on cue.

"No one ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American public." (H.L. Mencken)

If this program continues to be popular, Mencen's worrds will be confirmed.

Mencken's words.

Sticky keyboard.

Lee (Ann), nice try. I'd say the dumbing down and the moral corruption started with your crowd of immoral libbies at MTV.

"I'd say the dumbing down and the moral corruption started with your crowd of immoral libbies at MTV."

You'd say that all right (in fact you just did) but that doesn't match reality.

Look at the recent attempt by Fox to capitalize on OJ Simpson! There is NOTHING that mtv or others have done that stoops to that level of manipulation by the media of mindless masses' emotional triggers of trotting out the OJ story and pumping up America's blood pressure over his murdering ways.

America Idol does exactly that... pushes those same love/hate emotional triggers -- "24" pushes similar but different emotional hot buttons. Fox New play off the patriotic emotions of their audience -- it's all the same manipulation. Amateurs like Michelle Malkin try to play the game, but they aren't a match to likes of Fathead O'Reilly, Ann Coulter, Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity.

Those folks are as popular as they are because their obedient, emotionally-needy audiences just lap it up. Fox wouldn't serve this crap unless they had an audience for it, so there's no one to blame except the people who watch Fox-- and I'll wager that American Idol isn't watched by many MTV executives.

I understand that Fox News and conservative news and blog sites in general are experiencing a drop in audience levels -- so maybe America has wised up, and isn't buying the Fox manipulation to the same extent we (you) used to.

British TV is even worse, I hear.

Gosh, it was just the other day when Lorie referred to American Idol as "conservative television."

"The wild popularity of the show reveals at least a streak of political incorrect, if not downright conservative, thought in the 38 million American Idol viewers through it's main draw - Simon Cowell..."

Lee:
When Fox tops the forged TANG documents and its reporters continue to stand by the proven fakery, then you may have a point.

I haven't seen anything close yet.

People watch American Idol for the same reason they watch hockey and car racing. They want to see the wrecks, fights and contestants being ridiculed. If it wasn't for Simon and his mouth, this show wouldn't have lasted one season.

Malaysian Idol is funnier.

Anyone ever see any libnut outrage at all the MSM when they constantly lie and distort?

Fox has more libs on it the the rest of the lib networks combined. Hell, they still think Rather wasnt lying.

was it the Bush Baby?

The dumbing down of America is reaching ridiculous levels, and Fox is at the forefront. It's creating a nation of un-thinking FoxHeads -- that giggle and gasp, right on cue.

I submit that Lee is a prime example of the dumbing down of America to new levels - the new Vocal and Ignorant.

I absolutely agree with what you wrote.

I was sickened by the personal attacks on people. I know many people act more bizarre just to get on the show. But it was quite apparent that Simon went after someone who didn't even really understand. I have no problem with the judges telling someone that they weren't good enough, or that they skimmed by to the next level but they better work on their stage appeal. Again too far, too crude, too below the belt.

I am getting sick and tired of a show that could be very, very good without the personal attacks, spiraling out of control. American Idol had a great premise. Not any more. Simon truly showed how little he appreciates the very people who have made him wealthy.

"and I'll wager that American Idol isn't watched by many MTV executives" - Lee

Maybe not, it's debatable. What isn't debatable are the MTV execs stumbling all over themselves airing the lastest vids put out by the winners of AI.

I would also hazard the guess they also played a large part in the current phenomena by playing over and over the William Hung trash.

Idol's a guilty pleasure, but I'd appreciate more of the good singers earlier in the season. The first few weeks are simply for the purpose of making fun of the deluded. Everyone knows this. This isn't a surprise.

I've got special needs kids in my extended family and ya know, they'd be more pissed off if they weren't allowed to participate. They're tougher than they look and I don't think they'd appreciate your defending them. Just sayin'

...which is to say that I didn't notice them being particularly cruel to any of the kids on the little bus, of which I saw more than one.

Lee, Fox isn't the same as Fox News. Really, it's not.

Peter F....

Come on dude, go to nytimes.com and search on Ken Warwick.

or google it.

You knew that.

P

A question unasked here, Paul, is would the ridiculed contestants rather they hadn't made it to air?

Maybe not.

Heh Paul...obivous?
I wonder what the definition of that is...?

(and why it took so long for anyone to catch it)

Is that drop, Lee, kinda like the CONSTANT drop CBS, NCA TO match their rate of decline they would have to do something like HALF their audience.

ANd do please not I am talking about rate before brining up some sort of drivel about total audience share for a broadcast netqwork Vs a cable network. .and also. .numbers? AND numbers for the competitors at the same time.

mantis, would it be ok for me to shoot one of your relatives if you didn't like them anyway?

================

Henry if you followed the link you would have found it was obvious to me as soon as I saw it.

I wasn't the only one. Google is your friend.

mantis, would it be ok for me to shoot one of your relatives if you didn't like them anyway?

Well, if it was one particular cousin maybe we could work something out. ;)

I didn't really mean to justify the nastiness of the AI judges or producers, I think the show is pretty much the bottom of the barrel, that being the primary reason. I just meant to point out the other side to the story.

Obviously the contestants in question would rather have the publicity without having been ridiculed for their physical attributes. I think that AI would do well to stick with ridiculing people for their singing skills only, and leave out the cheap shots (including the producers fast-tracking the most ridiculous/pathetic contestants to the final rounds). But either way the motivations of the contestants are interesting.

The more interesting aspect of this, to me anyway, is the question of why people are willing to endure the ridicule, either talent or appearance-based, in order to be famous (15 minutes or more). What compels someone who obviously has no singing talent to go before three jackasses whose sole purpose is to laugh at them (for the first few weeks, anyway) in the hopes that they can get some airtime, is beyond me.

For one thing - Paula Abdul, as if she wasn't before, is now just a washed up drunken bimbo. She appeared recently on a local Dallas morning show about as doped-up or drunk (or both!) as it gets, so she really doesn't have much room to talk.

Secondly, I haven't watched one second of the show, but I'll be damned if they don't advertise the shit out of that thing constantly, but from the ads, Simon doesn't seem that funny to me.

But I will agree that it's difficult to determine who may be the bigger low life, the producers/hosts of the show, or the idiots who actually think that they can sing.

It is interesting however to see how much SMS (text messaging) traffic is generated by the voting audience during the finals though. Mobile Phone operators now use this spike in traffic to dimension their SMS capacity, just as they use Mother's Day for voice calls.

BTW, I always had Lee pegged as someone who tunes in to Lifetime.