Voting Problems for ‘American Idol’?
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It’s not quite time to call in Jimmy Carter, but “American Idol” has reached a critical juncture. The voting process of TV’s most successful show is coming under scrutiny.
The recent elimination of contestant Pia Toscano got the social networks abuzz with posts from shocked fans, many of whom claimed that sexism had played a part.
Pia, a crowd pleaser and music critic fave, provided the viewing audience with some of the most consistently professional performances this season. Not only was Pia expected to be one of the finalists, she was thought by many to be the one who would win it all.
When “Idol” host Ryan Seacrest revealed that Pia was the individual who received the lowest number of votes, the audience groaned and yelled, “No!” Jennifer Lopez burst into tears, while the two other judges, Randy Jackson and Steven Tyler, expressed bewilderment. Tyler even uncharacteristically scolded the voters, saying that their “lack of passion was unforgivable.”
A host of celebrities, including Tom Hanks, Ashton Kutcher and Jessica Alba, jumped onto their Twitter accounts to comment on the vote.
“Don’t have an IDOL habit, but how could the USA vote Pia off? I may be done for the season!” Hanks wrote.
Kutcher tweeted, “Who are the people that vote on American idol? That’s just crazy! That Pia girl is dope! #almostcriminal.”
Alba asked, “Who’s mad about Pia? I think she’s got a promising career ahead of her. Girl can sing her butt off and she’s stunning.”
The prior week the show had sent away Naima Adedapo and Thia Megia. With the elimination of Pia, it became the fifth consecutive time a female contestant had been unable to receive the votes necessary to continue in the competition.
In addition, no female has won “Idol” since Jordan Sparks four years ago became the last singer standing. As of this writing, only two women remain: Haley Reinhart and Lauren Alaina.
The odds, of course, now favor a male winner. This has led distressed “Idol” viewers to speculate that young female fans, the same demographic that created the Justin Bieber phenom, are swaying the overall vote.
“Idol” producers may have to reexamine the voting rules in order to maintain the show’s credibility. The current version of the rules allows voters to utilize the A.I. website to cast up to 50 votes. If fans are voting for contestants via their phones or by texting, they can vote as many times as they wish without limitation. This affords contestants with devotees, who are motivated enough to repeatedly vote, the chance to remain in the “Idol” race.
The rules could easily be changed to emulate the tried and true democracy principle of one person/one vote. The technology exists to limit each computer I.P. address or phone number to a single vote.
Still, there is another issue this year that relates to the judges. When Simon Cowell exited the show, he took his acerbic candor along with him. The current three-judge panel has taken a much more positive approach with contestants. This has lent a sweetness to the show that many find appealing.
For the artists, such an atmosphere is extremely encouraging and is a confidence booster. On the other hand, some critical guidance may be falling to the wayside in an effort to avoid stifling creative juices.
Randy, Jennifer and Steven certainly favor an upbeat approach. At its heart, it is a difference in philosophy and style of interaction. It suits them well, and the opportunity for viewers to witness their camaraderie is a bonus. However, this means that criticism, in all of its forms, must come generally to contestants’ ears via the musical mentors, who do not hold as much weight with participants or the voting public.
It turns out that Simon’s honest and sometimes brutal remarks may have served an important function, that of directing voters to performers who most deserved their attention, and ultimately their votes.
Hollywood Cools on Obama
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Blasts of criticism keep wafting President Obama’s way, and they’re not coming from Fox News.
The barbs tossed at the White House are arriving courtesy of some of the more prominent members of the Hollywood left, and the theme that keeps recurring is that there is a vacuum of leadership in the White House.
Matt Damon, who enthusiastically supported Obama’s 2008 campaign, has taken to griping about the president. He told CNN’s Piers Morgan that Obama had “misinterpreted his mandate.”
Damon quoted what he called a “great line” from a friend, who had said, “I no longer hope for audacity,” a reference to Obama’s book title, “Audacity of Hope.”
The actor attacked Obama’s policy in Afghanistan, referring to it as a mission that has not “been very well articulated.”
“It would help to kind of reframe the way we’re thinking about being there and why we’re there,” he added.
Damon was also peeved with Obama’s State of the Union speech. He decried the lack of any reference to the underprivileged in the address.
“He didn’t even say the word ‘poverty,’” Damon said. “You’ve got millions of people languishing in it.”
The former Lincoln Bedroom squatter, Barbra Streisand, confided her misgivings to Larry King back in late 2010, when King was still hosting his show. She expressed dismay about Obama and the Democratic Party, miffed that the president had not used “his executive privilege … to get rid of ‘don’t ask, don’t tell.”
The singer-actress revealed that she left the country and traveled to Europe before the midterm elections to avoid what she described as a “bloodbath.”
Streisand put on her political strategist cap and told Larry that she had figured out why her favorite party had suffered such a shellacking. According to Babs, it was due to “a mistake on the Democrats’ part that they have not gotten their message across in communicating all that they have done that is good.”
If only the Dems had sought communication advice from Streisand prior to November.
The Queen of Malibu was also unhappy with Obama’s tax compromise, describing it as “not fair to working people in America.” She grumbled, “It’s just not fair.”
Jane Lynch, channeling her Sue Sylvester “Glee” character, expressed her frustration with Obama during an interview with Newsweek in late 2010, conducted before “don’t ask, don’t tell” was repealed.
“We thought the great hope of Obama was going to magically change [gay rights], and it doesn’t seem to have … He’s just nicely walking the middle,” Lynch said.
In late 2009, Angelina Jolie chastised the president in an op-ed, which was published by Newsweek. In the column, titled “Justice Delayed Is Not Justice Denied,” the actress and U.N. Goodwill Ambassador gave an account of the tragedy in the Darfur region of Sudan where “government supported militia have left 300,000 dead and 2.7 million people internally displaced.”
Jolie blasted Obama’s absence of leadership, noting that his administration had “not yet announced any serious moves” to bring the profoundly malevolent Sudanese leaders to justice.
Us magazine cited sources at the time, which indicated that the actress “hates” Obama.
During the summer of 2009, Robert Redford, actor and head honcho of the Sundance Film Festival, went after the president for his inaction during the Gulf oil spill. He spouted criticism that was similar to the kind leveled against then-President Bush after Hurricane Katrina.
“The voters sent Obama to Washington to be a bold and visionary leader,” Redford told MSNBC, his tone implying that Obama had neither attribute.
“We don’t need a disaster-manager,” the actor said. “We need a leader.”
Movie director Spike Lee chimed in on the Gulf spill, telling GQ, “The thing we don’t talk about is that 11 Americans lost their lives and it took seven weeks to invite their families to the White House. I’m not trying to bash my man, but that’s a long time.”
Lee threw down the race card against the first African-American president, using the phrase “environmental racism.”
“If this oil spill would have reached the Hamptons, Martha’s Vineyard, Cape Cod, that [expletive] would have been fixed,” Lee said.
Who’s next to sound off?
It’s time for Obama to really start worrying if he gets some snarkiness from Snooki.
Justin Bieber’s Pro-life Stand Spurs Liberal Meltdown
By · CommentsJustin Bieber has infuriated the Left.

The young pop star, who has had numerous hit songs and whose movie had a $30 million debut weekend, recently spoke out on a taboo subject.
Bieber, who happens to be a Christian, was asked in a Rolling Stone interview to express his views on abortion. Not only did he equate abortion with murder, he suggested that it is wrong even in cases of rape and incest.
“I really don’t believe in abortion … It’s like killing a baby,” the teen icon told the Rolling Stone.
The interviewer followed up with a question about cases in which pregnancy was the result of rape. Bieber replied that it was his belief that “everything happens for a reason.” He then added, “I haven’t been in that position, so I wouldn’t be able to judge that.”
Some in the media flipped out and immediately became diss-Beliebers. The liberal panelists on ABC’s “The View” provide a prime example.
Excerpt for more CLICK HERE
Lindsay Lohan’s ‘Borrow’ Defense
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It all began when a Venice, California jewelry store reported a missing necklace.
It was not your run-of-the-mill jewelry item but reportedly a one of a kind piece of bling, made with gold and semi-precious stones and valued at $2,500.
According to police, Lindsay Lohan was seen in a store video, wearing the necklace prior to it having been reported missing. Photos of the actress taken a week later showed her wearing a very similar looking necklace.
After police detectives obtained a warrant to search the troubled actress’s Venice home, the necklace was turned in to a police station by a Lohan associate.
According to TMZ’s sources, Lohan claims she does not fill out paperwork when she borrows expensive necklaces from jewelry stores, but instead leaves that task to her underlings.
Lohan reportedly told friends that she doesn’t “deal with things like that.”
She is currently still on probation in her ongoing DUI case and, according to TMZ, she is expected to be charged with felony grand theft. If convicted, Lindsay could spend years in prison.
However, the Los Angeles County District Attorney disputes the TMZ report.
“I don’t know where TMZ is getting their information,” Los Angeles County District Attorney spokeswoman, Sandi Gibbons, told the Beverly Hills Courier. “We have our investigation under review and a filing decision has not been made.”
Her case seems to turn on whether she merely “borrowed” the costly accessory or took it without consent.
The shop owner tells a decidedly different tale. Sofia Kaman, owner of Kamofie & Company, told TMZ that there is a step-by-step procedure that is followed for a loan of jewelry.
Kaman admitted that typically, rather than the celebrity, a stylist who works for the star “will come in and ask to borrow the jewelry for a shoot or an event.”
“When we loan out jewelry, we have a whole procedure that needs to be done,” Kaman said. “There needs to be insurance information given or credit card information in case something happens with the jewelry.”
Shawn Chapman Holley, Lindsay’s on-again, off-again attorney, has released a statement saying that the actress plans to fight any charges brought against her.
“We vehemently deny these allegations and, if charges are filed, we will fight them in court,” the statement read.
It’s not the first time Lindsay has been connected with missing jewels. In 2009, British police investigated the disappearance from an Elle magazine photo shoot of $400,000 worth of Dior gems. Elle later released a statement exonerating Lohan.
Lindsay is also currently under investigation for allegedly assaulting an employee at the Betty Ford Clinic, where she was recently receiving rehab treatment.
The legal clouds forming over Lohan’s head could spoil her plans for a comeback film role in a thinly veiled autobiography.
‘American Idol’ Slips in the Ratings
By · CommentsNothing boosts the bottom line of a television network like a #1 rated show.
Fox television has brought in the largest amount of advertising revenue of any series in television history with the cultural phenomenon, “American Idol.”
The show has created its own enterprise by driving record sales and digital downloads with a string of music superstars such as Carrie Underwood, Kelly Clarkson and Daughtry.
However, with Simon Cowell’s leaving, “Idol” has gone through a total remake. The new judge lineup has Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler joining original judge Randy Jackson. This has created a degree of uncertainty with regard to the show’s continued ratings success.
Excerpt: for more CLICK HERE
Could ‘Toy Story 3’ Be the First Best Picture Toon?
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A particular Oscar campaign that may be of interest to
movie-loving conservatives is one that involves Disney. The Mouse House
is going after a nomination in the Best Picture category for “Toy Story
3.”
The company is running ads in trade publications that show past Best
Picture Oscar winners such as “Shakespeare in Love” with Toy Story
characters superimposed. Excerpt: for more CLICK HERE
Stewart and Colbert’s Rally about Nothing
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Democrats wanted to use Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert’s rally this past weekend to motivate young voters to participate in the midterm elections.
The crowd was mostly Dems. But it also contained some generally apathetic Comedy Central fans.
The three-hour rally consisted mainly of satire and comedy with humorous sketches and surprise musical guests including Kid Rock, Ozzy Osbourne, the O’Jays, Sheryl Crow, Tony Bennett and the former Cat Stevens, Yusuf Islam.
In one rare quasi-political stunt, Stewart gave a “Medal of Reasonableness” to Velma Hart, the now famous lady who told Obama that she was “exhausted” from having to defend him.
A host of left-leaning organizations were there in an apparent attempt to politicize the event.
God Loves Bill Maher
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Bill Maher, who years ago hosted the ABC late-night talk show “Politically Incorrect” and currently hosts HBO’s “Real Time,” has consistently demonstrated an antipathy for religion, religious expression and the Judeo Christian God.
Maher’s attitude is typically condescending. At the same time, he
tends to ignore the fact that the vast majority of faith-filled folks
aren’t the extremists he cites as his examples.
On a recent installment of his show, Maher took issue with something that Glenn Beck had shared with the public. Maher groused that Beck had said that before he got married his then-fiancé wanted to pick out a religion.
The New Way to Get a TV Deal: Twitter
By · CommentsHey writers tweet those TV ideas. The new trend in television may be developing a series from a Twitter page…
CBS is developing two new comedies, including a project based off a Twitter feed produced by social-media master Ashton Kutcher.
Following on the successful launch of its Twitter-inspired comedy
“$#*! My Dad Says” last week, CBS has made a script deal for “Shh …
Don’t Tell Steve,” based on a Twitter feed by the same name.
Hollywood to the rescue with cash for Feingold
By · CommentsDemocrat Russ Feingold. As reported by The Hill,
Among Feingold’s contributors are filmmakers Steven Spielberg and
Harvey Weinstein, actors Michael Douglas and Edie Falco, as well as
NBC’s Jeffrey Zucker, music executive David Geffen, and producer
Jeffrey Katzenberg and his wife, Marilyn, according to
CQMoneyLine.com.Writer and producer Tom Fontana, creator of the television series
“Homicide: Life on the Street” and “Oz,” also ponied up for Feingold,
as did actress Kathryn Erbe, who has appeared in “Law and Order” and “Oz.”
Amazingly, three of the donors were so anxious to contribute that they violated campaign finance limits.
…Weinstein, Douglas and Fontana all gave donations that were
over the $5,000 legal limit per cycle and had to be reimbursed for the
surplus.


