2008 Woodie Awards
Anger over 'Idol' issues
Ryan Bacher
Issue date: 4/13/07 Section: Opinion
Originally published: 4/12/07 at 3:48 PM EST
Last update: 4/12/07 at 4:25 PM EST
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Americans are finally speaking out.
After years under a corrupt and inefficient voting system, American citizens are raising their collective fist in anger, using any and all means of media and communication available to them to protest the continued presence of an unqualified candidate.
I only wish I was speaking about something other than "American Idol".
And how can the nation's biggest karaoke contest anger so many people?
It's a 17-year-old boy with bipolar hair and a Teflon-like ability to avoid elimination, and his name is Sanjaya Malakar.
The anger he evokes from fans of the show goes beyond most anything I've seen on television since 9/11.
His presence on "American Idol" divides people's allegiances more sharply than a post-electoral red and blue map on cable news.
The crimes he has committed against humanity are numerous: he sometimes forgets the words to his songs, he's often off-key and off-pitch, he wore his hair in a seven-pronged fauxhawk once and - God help us - he danced the hula on national television.
And for these crimes Americans are seeking justice the only way they can - through the Internet.
The blogosphere is hopping with people threatening to stop watching "American Idol" if Sanjaya survives the next and then the next round of competition.
A few people on MySpace and YouTube have posted videos declaring that they will starve themselves until Sanjaya is voted off the show.
One young woman lasted 16 days, which is a shame because it looked like she could have used a good hunger strike or two.
One of my friends even wishes that he would "die in a fire."
On the other side of this great divide are the people supporting Sanjaya, mostly as a joke.
Howard Stern directed his listeners to vote for Sanjaya, and some of them have reported making hundreds of votes for him.
Votefortheworst.com, a Web site dedicated to getting people to vote for the least qualified "American Idol" contestant, picked Sanjaya as its target this season.
After years under a corrupt and inefficient voting system, American citizens are raising their collective fist in anger, using any and all means of media and communication available to them to protest the continued presence of an unqualified candidate.
I only wish I was speaking about something other than "American Idol".
And how can the nation's biggest karaoke contest anger so many people?
It's a 17-year-old boy with bipolar hair and a Teflon-like ability to avoid elimination, and his name is Sanjaya Malakar.
The anger he evokes from fans of the show goes beyond most anything I've seen on television since 9/11.
His presence on "American Idol" divides people's allegiances more sharply than a post-electoral red and blue map on cable news.
The crimes he has committed against humanity are numerous: he sometimes forgets the words to his songs, he's often off-key and off-pitch, he wore his hair in a seven-pronged fauxhawk once and - God help us - he danced the hula on national television.
And for these crimes Americans are seeking justice the only way they can - through the Internet.
The blogosphere is hopping with people threatening to stop watching "American Idol" if Sanjaya survives the next and then the next round of competition.
A few people on MySpace and YouTube have posted videos declaring that they will starve themselves until Sanjaya is voted off the show.
One young woman lasted 16 days, which is a shame because it looked like she could have used a good hunger strike or two.
One of my friends even wishes that he would "die in a fire."
On the other side of this great divide are the people supporting Sanjaya, mostly as a joke.
Howard Stern directed his listeners to vote for Sanjaya, and some of them have reported making hundreds of votes for him.
Votefortheworst.com, a Web site dedicated to getting people to vote for the least qualified "American Idol" contestant, picked Sanjaya as its target this season.
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