MTV Newsroom » Is ‘American Idol’ Rigged? Or Is Paula a Woman on the Verge?

Is ‘American Idol’ Rigged? Or Is Paula a Woman on the Verge?

13 Comments | Published by MTV News on Wednesday, April 30, 2008 at 11:32 am.

A few thoughts about Paula’s “Idol” debacle last night:

Before people get too carried away with the whole “rigging” thing, let’s take a step back for a moment and analyze just a bit.

It may be that what was ultimately revealed last night is that Paula, who’s been more lucid this season than in recent years, has help in formulating her feedback/comments.

All one has to do is watch the show on a regular basis to know that if Randy has anyone helping him with his comments, he or she should be fired immediately. He literally says the same thing, almost verbatim, week after week. “It’s like I say, if you can sing, you can sing anything DAWG!” As for Simon? Come on. Does anyone really think that Simon Cowell is a puppet? Is he going to let others speak for him? No way.

In the end, the best argument against the rigging theory is last week’s results. The judges praised Carly. And she went home. That’s not an anomaly. The public will do what the public will do.

And as for the producers orchestrating a David vs. David finale? The public doesn’t need much encouragement to that end. It’s an absolute inevitability having nothing to do with the judges’ commentary and everything to do with the performances they’ve delivered and the followings they’ve built.

What do you think? Is the show rigged? Or was Paula just totally out of it?

Filed Under: American Idol, Television

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13 Comments to “Is ‘American Idol’ Rigged? Or Is Paula a Woman on the Verge?”

jess says:

11:48 on 04/30

she just made a mistake. she got confused right there in the moment. it happens to everyone sometimes. she was perfectly fine for the rest of the show. rigged? haha no way. i love paula but even i have to say, she wouldnt be able to remember her "lines" for each performer, if they were scripted.
Beth R. says:

12:07 on 04/30

Not only is the idea that Paula has help formulating her responses IN ADVANCE wrong on multiple levels (she's supposed to be formulating her responses based on what she actually sees and hears) but you can't ignore the psychological blackballing of Castro who had to go on stage and perform, knowing he was about to be slammed regardless of how well he did. Just as despicable as what was done to Castro is the fact that Archuleta was going to receive glowing reviews regardless of the quality of his performance. Which he did, on performances that were subpar at best.
AI has just revealed itself to be a complete sham. Count me as a viewer who won't be tuning in next year.
Emmaelizabeth says:

12:34 on 04/30

I think Jason deserves an apology and a free pass this week after Paula's debacle - can you imagine what a more emotional contestant might have done in the circumstances? Jason was a perfect gentleman and didn't embarrass Paula but I'll bet he was seething inside and it must have affected how he sang his second song. Don't ya' think.?. If he goes this week I shall never watch AI again and waste my money voting. Is this programme just for the beneit of the telephone companies?
chuck wilson says:

12:59 on 04/30

i think paula should of stop and started over like brook did last week when paula had to say 3 or 4 times its live tv its live tv you should of made something up well we saw what that did for paula maybe she should tell brook you did the right thing
b0bbyr0we says:

1:14 on 04/30

Considering how much better than everyone else Carly was last week, she wasn't really praised. Randy started off with "Not your best," and Simon gave the heaping praise of, "actually not bad." The voting isn't rigged, but this whole season it has seemed like the judges comments have been, to influence the votes to give the desired outcome. 17 year olds with obsessive teeny-bopper audiences do alot more old fashioned record selling than anyone else these days, and if its a top 2 finisher, it guarantees that 19 has a stake in that. David A is super talented for sure, but he's forgotten his words several times after his first major time. All of the other times, the producers have cut to a shot above his head to make it less obvious. Any other season I would have said Paula is just crazy, but now it seems like confirmation of what people have been wondering all season. The judges are being told who to praise.
McRossi says:

1:23 on 04/30

I think that it is rigged and they get mad when it does not work out the way that they want (i.e. Taylor Hicks). I think that the main rigging going on last night was Simon saying that Syesha was in trouble that was a clear comment beggin people to vote for her to keep her in the game. She will get the sympathy vote this week even though she has been in the bottom 3 about every week. Brooke and Jason Castro need to watch out they may be sent packing or may be David Archuletta will go home since the same people who vote for him would play into Simon's trap of voting for poor Syesha.
Lessia Bonn says:

4:10 on 04/30

If Simon wasn't harsh sometimes and off the wall, there would be no show. It's all good guy/bad guy stuff. Pure entertainment. Paula is loopy. Randy is cool. Simon keeps the show interesting by being unpredictable yet usually quite close to the truth.
This weekend we shot a funny SCARY GUY: Ode to Simon Cowell video. The teenage singer is a HOOT-- really funny--like Betty Boop. I seriously wonder what Simon would think about her.

hahaha ODE TO SIMON: SCARY GUY:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=84xtGS4TU7M
tracey says:

4:37 on 04/30

in south africa we are 4 episodes behind, but im trying to stay updated on the web. this season paula seems to be quite clueless and quite often embaraces herself. david a is a definiten favourite here, hope he will win. idols in sa is a sad state of affairs by the way, your show rocks.
Ralph says:

5:34 on 04/30

ABSOLUTELY it is totally rigged. Hello? Paula's mind wandered, she didn't hear who was singing, and she read the wrong script too early...watch it...why is she reading anyway? Simon Cowell is thinking "OH GOD" or something a lot worse because Paula has blown their cover and he's tapping her arm, and Ryan is covering like a rodeo clown...watch him looking offstage to a production staff person telling him to get out there and start talking!!!! Anyway, I know this also because I'm in the music biz and I have friends I know personally that have been on this show and others like it that Cowell produces...and they bring in ringers that don't have to pass auditions, and others for comedic drama, etc...and it's scripted like a Springer show...all the way. A.I. is the worst thing that ever happened to the music business and the talented professionals who devote their lives to surviving doing it. Let Neil Diamond sing his own songs. These people aren't creating or inventing anything new that's going to be remembered in music history, except maybe Paula's bad script reading that exposed the whole thing...that might wind up in the books.
Stefan says:

10:09 on 04/30

I think Taylor Hicks sucked and he should have not won but he did....Now a dum David Archuleta seems like will win this sesion....I think he sucks!!!!!! He may be an OK singer but the other singers have a way better voice then him. I personally think he should now win this sesion because he is just not that good....all the love he gets for what? That he is 17 and is an average singer? His voice annoys me...its the same thing everyweek. He forgot the lyrics on the Steve Wonder song and SANG IT BAD!!!! Yet he still was not even close to be in the bottom 3. He should just get eliminated next week because if he wins it will be a ripoff....the shows has been pushing him to win from the very start of the top 24! I just home America gives someone else a better chance like David Cook or Shaysha, but i dont think she will make it to the top 3.
Mary says:

11:51 on 04/30

I think that the judges had heard the songs before hand. But Paula stutters around every week with what she is trying to say. And who dresses her lately!!!!! OMG
laura says:

3:14 on 05/01

I don't know if the show is rigged or not. I mean how would we know anyway? All we can do is call and vote for our favorite, but we don't know what the rest of the United States is doing, so there's really no way to know. Chris Daughtry should have won 2 years ago and last year, NO ONE was incredibly talented, so I can see it both ways. David Cook is BY FAR the best and most talented on the show. How Jason Castro is staying in is beyond me. He doesn't even act like he cares. All these little girls are voting for him and he needs to wash his hair if you ask me. It's gross. Carly should have been at least top 3 (if you are going on talent). But as far as my opinion on the show being "rigged", I just don't know.....
mike says:

2:31 on 05/22

The show is obviously rigged there were studies that showed the phone voting did not match the results. Go to Http://www.uncoveror.com/american_idol_rigged.htm there is all the evidence you need to know. The show should be sued for fraud since the most talented person the previous shows don’t win!!! And as far as further evidence Simon’s apology to David (the fake American idol) Cook shows further evidence that the show is rigged. The show should not be allowed and the people who run the show should be criminally charged for fraud. The show probably gets a cut of the phone profits. The advertisers should also sue for fraud their products have been damaged by this corrupt show.