Controversy
- American Idol has come under fire for maintaining what some claim to be total control of the careers of the winners of the contest. Former co-host Brian Dunkleman referred to the show as “owning” the winning contestants, noting that winners sign contracts to only record with companies owned by the show’s producers and to allow related agencies to manage their careers.
- Former contestant Corey Clark told reporters in April 2005 that he and Idol judge Paula Abdul had a “secret affair” prompting an investigation by external counsel hired by Fox, FremantleMedia and 19 Entertainment. The 600-hour investigation spanning three months cleared Abdul of all charges levied by Clark.[28]
- During season three, controversy arose at the poor showing during the semi-finals of three highly praised African American contestants, Jennifer Hudson, LaToya London and Fantasia Barrino – collectively known during that season as the ‘Three Divas’. After the surprise elimination of Hudson, Sir Elton John, who was a guest judge for that season criticized the vote as ‘incredibly racist’ in a press conference.[29] The elimination of both Hudson and London relatively early in the competition has been pointed out as a classic demonstration of vote splitting in the American idol vote.[30] Barrino would eventually go on to win the competition; however, many see Barrino’s success as proof that no real racism was present in the show or its voting.[citation needed]
- Since the 2004 season, American Idol producers have battled online community services such as the websites DialIdol.com, Worldsentiment.com, and VotefortheWorst.com. DialIdol predicts which contestants may be voted off or are in danger of being voted off based on the percentage of times an automatic dialer encounters a busy signal for each contestant; Worldsentiment uses very large samplings and algorithms to predict the outcome of the vote-off; and VotefortheWorst exhorts viewers to vote for what the site deems to be the worst contestant, rather than the best. Some in the media have implied that Las Vegas odds makers exert behind-the-scenes influence in protecting the services.[31][32]
- A series of provocative photos surfaced on the Internet of Season 6 Top 24 Contestant Antonella Barba.[33]
- According to the Howard 100 News LaKisha Jones’s departure (Season 6) was not because of America’s vote, but rather a predetermined outcome. Their source claims that travel arrangements for LaKisha to return home were made prior to the start of the May 8, 2007 performance show, well before the phone lines were opened. The source also claims that a significant sized crew was sent to Flint, Michigan for reaction shots, however crews were not sent to the remaining contestants’ home towns.[34]
- Fans and critics alike were stunned at Melinda Doolittle’s departure. Simon Cowell admitted that the sixth season’s crown should have rightfully gone to Melinda.[35] Executive producer Nigel Lythgoe responded, noting that “[Idol producers] were so engrossed with the mentors and didn’t really focus on the Melinda Doolittles of the show”. Lythgoe also produces So You Think You Can Dance, and has noted that the dance program gives background information about its contestants, while American Idol focused more on its big name celebrity mentors, such as Tony Bennett, Gwen Stefani, and Jennifer Lopez.[36]
- Season 7 contestant Carly Smithson has stirred up controversy due to a prior major label record deal she had with MCA Records. It has been reported that MCA spent over 2 million dollars promoting Smithson’s previous album “Ultimate High”, which she made under the name Carly Hennessy. The album sold 378 copies, but is now available on iTunes. To further complicate things, Randy Jackson worked for MCA during the same period of time that Smithson was signed. The show made no mention of this deal. In addition, contestants Michael Johns and Kristy Lee Cook were also represented by a major record label at one time–Johns signed to Maverick [37], Cook to Arista Nashville. And at the age of twelve, current favorite David Archuleta, now 17, was a winner of the Junior Singer category in the talent contest “Star Search” [38] . Contestant Robbie Carrico was formerly a member of the group Boyz N Girlz United, who had a minor hit in 2000 with the single “Messed Around”, as well as opening for Britney Spears in 1999.[39] This new information raises questions as to whether this year’s contestants can be considered “amateur”, noting their prior work within the entertainment industry.
- David Hernandez, one of the top 16 in season 7, was revealed by VotefortheWorst.com to have worked as a male stripper in Phoenix, AZ. According to the owner of Dick’s Cabaret, David’s job included a routine featuring full nudity and performing lap dances for male clientèle.[40] Nude pictures of David at work have since been released. No disclosure of his career as a stripper was made by Fox prior to the release.
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