Idolator

Conspiracy is not just a theory. The producers and judges are conducting a smear campaign to get rid of Jason so they can have their dream ticket finale.

This incident last Tuesday had nothing to do with the rehearsal or Paula being "confused," as some people are trying to claim as excuses.

Here's her explanation from Ryan's radio show the next morning (when Paula presumably wasn't as "confused" as she was Tuesday night:


- Paula: "I was reading the critique of what I was writing for Jason Castro, and on the same page that I wrote, was also David's, and I got lost on my notes, and that's as simple as it was. I did catch the last minute of Jason Castro" (the rehearsal she watched on the monitor).

- Ryan: "So what you are saying is, you were talking about two different people, but accidentally you said 'second song.' "

- Paula: "Yes."

Obviously it was not David Cook's note she was reading. "I felt like your usual charm was missing for me. It kind of left me a little empty. And the two songs made me feel like you're not fighting hard enough to get into the top 4," as if David would have to "fight hard" for a spot there, but then she says David is "fantastic" and she's looking at "the next American Idol"?

C'mon. This is obviously a lie to cover up the fact that they have been trying to get rid of Jason for weeks now. I like Paula and she was just doing what she was told. Her only mistake was exposing this charade to the public.

With the ejection of Carly and Michael Johns, the show lost the key "foreigners" demographic.

Also, the fact that viewers probably assume that everyone in the Top 5 will release an album within the year doesn't help - nobody really cares who wins anymore.

It could just be that the concept's played out. Once you get to the stage of determining who's really a pro, analyzing past winners, etc. etc., it indicates that the actual core of the show is a big pile of whatever. It's just ritual now, and its novelty is gone.

Am I the only who is finding it odd that, even as the ratings continue to slide, the total number of votes received -- at least as announced by Ryan -- continues to rise? Didn't he say there were over 45 million votes received this week? That's a significant jump from last year, when the highest vote total week brought in around 36 million, IIRC.

Maybe the kids are sending more and more text messages per capita this season. But I think it's also possible that the Nielsen numbers are missing a substantial number of viewers, perhaps in group settings.