Pitchfork Prediction
…so called because I’m sure someone will want to break out the pitchforks after tonight’s show.
We will now see sweep across the internet a call for reforms of the American Idol voting process. Remember the outcry when Ruben landed in the bottom 3 last year? (That one time.) Or when Nikki beat out Tamyra to make it to the final three? Or even when Joshua Gracin or Carmen Rasmusen made it through any week last season?
All we heard were repeated calls for a new voting system for AI.
I think after tonight’s show, that will be the topic of the hour for the rest of the week until the next episode. I’m not saying whether it’s right or wrong, but that it will happen. As a purely academic exercise, I’d love to see how voting patterns would be affected if they didn’t give us a bottom three each week, and just told us who got the least number of votes. I bet we’d have more great singers getting voted out early that way.
I’ll do a full show recap tomorrow morning. I just wanted to get that prediction out there before it comes true in internet time.
Update: It’s already happening this morning. I turned on the radio and they DJs were just starting to discuss last night’s AI. The first thing out of their mouths was, “They need to start charging for the votes, so people don’t call in so much.” Here we go again. . .
1. April 2004 at 08:41
i dont know what the filth happened last night but i would almost be willing to giv ethe responsibility to the judges each week. there is no way in H E double hockeysticks that latoya should have been in the bottom three and John knew it. i loved how the camera continuously zoomed in on him afterward with that glazed look on his face knowing he should be at least in the three if not the one to leave. hopefully next week. his look over his shoulder, raise one eyebrow, snap his fingers bit is really wearing thin. hopefully for him they may come up with bratpack idol. he would be a shoein.
1. April 2004 at 08:52
The voting process has many problems. All of America knows that. We have seen it with the first two seasons (and in the Florida Presidential elections!). I just hope the American public wakes up and realizes that this is a talent competition (based on singing talent), and not a popularity contest. I agree with Simon….”Let American vote, and this is what you get.” This is just pitiful.
1. April 2004 at 12:25
If they were to do the opposite, and ask America to vote for their least favorite singer, that would allow the families of lesser-talented contestants to gang up on contestants who sing better. A couple of years ago on the Big Brother reality show, the friends and family of a male contestant voted against a young woman they considered a threat to the man and got her voted off the show. She had been favored to win.