Here ya go...


TiVo users 'Idol's' big loser

By Greg Braxton, Times Staff Writer
May 25, 2007

The results are in on "American Idol," and the Fox juggernaut's ratings are down significantly from its finale last year. According to Nielsen Media Research's national numbers, Wednesday's "Idol" drew an audience of 30.7 million. While that is certainly hefty, last year 36.4 million people watched Taylor Hicks win the singing competition.

These ratings reflected what has been an overall drop-off in television viewing this spring, which the networks have attributed to the earlier-than-usual switch to daylight savings along with the growth in DVR usage to time-shift programming.

On Wednesday, some of those same DVR users were cut off from the "Idol" finale's denouement, when Jordin Sparks was crowned over Blake Lewis. The live broadcast ran until 10:09 p.m., and Sparks' win was left until the dwindling minutes of the program, which DVR users would have missed unless they were technologically savvy enough to program their recorders to add in that cushion of time.

As one aced-out viewer griped in a message board on the fan site http://www.televisionwithoutpity.com : "I was smart enough to program my DVR to go over by 5 minutes, but not smart enough to go for 10 minutes."

On Thursday afternoon, Fox issued a statement apologizing to viewers who missed the end of "Idol." "We're sorry that DVR users may have missed the conclusion," it read in part. "It was always our intention to bring the show in on time, but just as with any live sports, variety, awards or entertainment event, there is no way to absolutely guarantee that the show will end exactly on the hour. Fox and the producers apologize to those viewers who were inconvenienced."

Last season's finale ran over by four minutes, and the previous two also went over. TiVo, which got complaints from disgruntled subscribers, also issued a statement instructing viewers to learn from this experience. TiVo spokeswoman Katie Ho wrote in an e-mail: "At TiVo we're huge 'American Idol' fans too, and some of us also missed the last few minutes. Had we known the program would run over the allotted time, we definitely would have alerted our subscribers to pad a few extra minutes of recording time, as insurance.

"Be it the Oscars, the Grammys, assorted sporting events, or 'American Idol,' some events run long."

I caught it on my dvr by just taping the next show. I figured it would go long.

As for viewership problems, I really think it stems from two of the favorites (Melinda and Lakeshia) being hideous beasts. They could both sing, but were hard to look at. They were by far better singers than either finalist, but it is a misnomer to say this is a singing competetion. It is American "Idol" not America's best singer. An Idol has to have talent, but an idol also has to be charismatic in some way. Neither Lakeshia or Melinda had it, and if they would have made it to the final it would have been even lower rated. This season seemed to be a stacked deck of unattractive people who could sing very well. They really need more attactive personalities that also can sing. I'm not saying get non-singer models. Actually, it seems the more homey, boy or girl next door works better. They just didn't seem to have enough of that this year.

I don't know it's fair to say that LaKisha was a far better singer than Jordin... I think I could pretty successfully argue that in a lot of ways Jordin was a better singer than LaKisha.

I think this season shows just how out of touch the judges and producers are with the current pop music scene.

They were so horny for Melinda who had absolutely no commercial potential. She may have been the best singer in the competition but the voters showed what they thought of that.

And the producers with their theme weeks made for some pretty feeble moments when they forced 20'ish kids to constantly sing songs older than them that they couldn't care less about. Wouldn't you want them to be finding their voices and be performing songs which would be similar to something they'd do with their career? The whole theme week thing just promotes the "jack of all trades" kind of singer who can put some twang in their voice for country week, and cheese it up and sing some Sinatra the next week.

Too bad it doesn't seem there will be a Rockstar this summer, I really believe that they had the best formula to their show, even if it appealed to a much more focused (and thus smaller) audience due to the song variety.

Agreed. As a contest, Rockstar was head and shoulders above AI. But no doubt has a smaller audience. I was bored with AI this year. I didn't even watch the last episode (I just checked the internet later in the night), and missed many others. There is just so much fluff in almost every show now, there is absolutely no way I could do it without DVR. I'm thinking actually I may be done with the show.

Latoya London, who by most accounts was not a "hideous beast" went out I believe with 3 or 4 people left and by far had the best voice of the lot. It all balls down to personal preference, to which a vast majority of the power voting audience does not prefer the adult contemporary R & B genre that Melinda and Lakisha fall into.

Amen. Rockstar was much better.

I couldn't make it past about 30 minutes of Rockstar. Some of the most horrific sounds I've ever heard.

I enjoyed American Idol. I'll be back next season.

Given the style differences, which put less emphasis on pure vocal ability, one would expect a rock singer to not necessarily be as good a singer (in theory) as someone in an AI-type contest. That said, I heard just as many off-key performances during AI as I heard on rockstar (again, factoring in the style of music). As a plus, though, which I would think somone like you would appreciate, the singers actually had input into the creative process apart from OK'ing their wardrobe, and several plyed instruments and wrote/arranged a number of the songs they performed. That more than makes up for a little less vocal ability, IMO.

Of course, I listen to stuff where guys belch more than sing, so I guess it's all relative if you're used to listening to music that revolves around pure vocals.

I was under the impression AI contestants could arrange their own? Look at Blake. I'm sure he had quite a bit of creative input. As far as playing instruments, meh. That should probably be for a different show.

I always thought American Idol is supposed to be a singing contest, not a search for the next pop music icon. It shouldn't matter what the contestants look like, but how they sing.

Melinda had the best voice. That should be all that matters. This is why I'll never know why Soul Patrol won last year and why the beatbox king was in the finals this year. Neither had the pipes or deserved to be there.

The closer they get to "the winner is the most marketable" the farther away I'll move away from the show.

Personally, I'd like to see MORE older songs. Older songs forces the performers to, y'know, actuallly SING instead of what they do nowadays.


No, I want to be able to gauge how well they can sing traditionally, and older songs will do that.


It's a sad day when singing Sinatra constitutes "cheesing".

Canadian Idol actually starts this week for you Canucks. The big difference this year is that singers are allowed to bring an instrument on stage with them, so that may promote a more well rounded musician vs. just someone with a good voice, which is probably a good thing for the long term success of that artist.

It could be a singing competition if the judges decided who stays and who goes, but it's the fans who have the power. So no matter how many times the judges say it's a singing competition, it's like we're back in high school again and it's a popularity contest. Most popular does not necessarily equal the best, and we regularly see the best "artist" getting knocked off at the 3-4-5 spots because they do not appeal to the largest crowd.

And the whole thing about Sinatra is directed at the contestants singing it, not at the original artist. It's a very distinct king of music and suited for a certain kind of singer, and when most of the contestants sing it, it comes off pretty poorly.

To me, the whole theme week idea is in the best interest of having an exciting TV show vs. finding America's next superstar.

Once again, the show is called "American Idol" and not "America's Best Singer." Furthemore, if it was just a singing contest, we would listen to it on the radio rather than watch it on TV. This contest can best be entitled

"America's Best Person Who Can Do Things on a Stage And Look Good While Singing a Song Which They Have Either Never Heard or Hate Who Most Impresses People Watching Television from The Comfort of Their Couch So They Don't Know the Studio Audience Feeling and May Have Only Watched One Show or No Shows Before Voting Or Watched All The Shows And Didn't Vote At All."

If you think it's anything more than that, you are incorrect, sir.

Ding ding ding, we have a winner.

People who think this is a singing competition just don't get it.

For some reason, I was just thinking about this again, and I found this picture on the American Idol website:

For some reason, I haven't stopped thinking about this since. Haley has improved my marital sex life.




Don't tell my wife.

FYI, for McPhee fans....


Indie calls McPhee for feature bow
“American Idol” runner-up Katharine McPhee is set to make her feature film debut as the star of the indie dark romantic comedy “The Last Caller.”

Penned by Michael Albanese, the story is described as a coming-of-age tale about a self-obsessed woman (McPhee) who searches for love, hope and meaning during a few random events with other urban seekers…..

I guess this dates back to the finale, but I don't recall hearing about this...


Simon Cowell Quitting American Idol.

23rd May 2007 12:01:01

Simon Cowell Quitting American Idol.... Music mogul Simon Cowell has stunned American Idol fans by revealing he's quitting the show in three years time.

The show's Mr. Nasty insists he won't be signing up for more episodes of the talent show after completing the 10th season of the TV phenomenon.

He tells U.S. news show Extra, "I'll have done 10 series and your time's up.

It's time then to do something new. I think it's time to bring in new people...

Ten years is a long time."

Probably because it'll never happen. What the hell else is he going to do? He's got a sweet, tremendously high paying gig that provides him with the freedom to keep getting shows on the air that ultimately fail.

AI is the only thing he's doing where he's visible. He's got his hands in a bunch of other things.

Exactly. And they're paying him a zillion dollars to be visible. You don't pass that money up just to keep on doing what you're already doing.

Logan, you do realize that he has been and still is a very successful record executive? Just because he became world famous because of AI doesn't mean life revolves around that. For Paula, yes, but not for those still in the business.

Hmm, I wonder if there is even the slightest possibility she may let loose the boobies in this one.

He's probably earnt enough from AI to be honest? Surely at some point another million won't be that important :p

WAY too early in her career for that, unfortunately...