The finale of this season's
American Idol airs this week on Fox. It's the battle of David vs., well...David. Singers David Cook and David Archuleta face off to determine who will...
I'm sorry, I can't even finish this. I just don't care. I really don't. I haven't watched an episode of
American Idol since the finale of season three. Since this is season seven, that means I've been skipping out on America's most popular karaoke competition for four years now. Even more than that when you consider that I didn't watch any of season one and merely took in seasons two and three as a social event rather than for the show itself. I long ago stopped caring what happens on
American Idol and now it seems I'm not alone.
This season of
Idol boasts, if that term even applies here, the lowest ratings in four years. Viewership has slumped by more than ten percent. While the show still dominates the weekly network top ten, that ten percent represents millions of viewers tuning out. What's the reason? Some would like to blame the writer's strike, as most network shows have taken a hit in ratings this season. However, those were scripted shows. With no writers crafting new episodes, they had to take an extended break from the air aside from the usual one they take during the summer. The shows went away for a while, people fell out of the habit of viewing. So even when the shows came back, the ratings weren't quite what they used to be.
But
American Idol isn't a scripted show. It didn't go anywhere. It's been going full blast, on schedule for the seemingly eight nights a week it's on since the January premier. Therefore, the writer's strike excuse doesn't really work here. People are tuning out of Idol for some other reason and I thinks it's just due to a general weariness with the concept as a whole. After seven seasons, people are getting tired of it. If you've seen one episode of
American Idol you've seen them all. People sang, some were happy, others were upset, Paula was nice, Simon was mean and Randy said "dawg" a lot. Repeat ad nauseum.
"But every season isn't the same!", you say. "Every contestant has their own personality!", you say. I say, does it even matter who wins? The only Idol winners to go on to real success were season one winner Kelly Clarkson and season four's Carrie Underwood. And those were only after they ditched their "American Idol winner" identities and came into their own as performers. Season two's winner Ruben Studdard and three's Fantasia Barrino have gone onto mediocre success in the niches of gospel and Broadway. Season five winner Taylor Hicks' debut album performed so poorly that his record label dropped him. Some of the show's losers like Clay Aiken, Chris Daughtry, and Jennifer Hudson have gone on to great success despite not having enough fan support to give them an
Idol victory. So I say again, doeas it really matter who wins or loses?
With the numbers slipping there was speculation that this may be the last season of
American Idol, but executive producer/judge/world class asshole Simon Cowell claims they'll keep going. And why not? They're still one of the highest rated shows on television, garnering millions of viewers each week. As long as people keep watching they'll keep cranking them out.
I, like millions of other Americans, won't be watching.
