AMERICAN IDLE
There is no greater testimony as
to the state of the American psyche than the wildly popular "talent show",
American Idol. What began, I suppose, as a program meant to follow in the
footsteps of similar programs from yesteryear, has become something quite
different. Many of the popular talking heads have discussed this phenomenon,
the fact that upwards of thirty million of our countrymen are watching this
show, and more importantly, what the show has become.
I remember American Bandstand and similar programs from my youth which seem
now, in retrospect, insanely innocent compared to this new fare. Even
American Idol has changed since its inception. There is an ubiquitous appeal
to watching fresh talent strut their stuff and coupled with the anticipation
of finding that pearl amongst a sea of oysters. My wife and kids watch, and
have watched since the show began. From what I hear on radio and from
talking to other people, this is a popular theme, the parent or parents
watching with children, much like many of us did with our parents when we
were young. It becomes a family event, like Art Linkletter or The Ed
Sullivan Show were for people from my generation.
However, American Idol is not The Ed Sullivan Show. Oh no, not at all. Over
the last few seasons the producers have deftly plumbed from the masses what
exactly they want to see, and have found their crown jewel in Simon Cowell,
the acerbic King of Judges. Now, the first few weeks of the show, the
culling process, if you will, has become more like something from the
amphitheaters of ancient Rome than wholesome family entertainment. The level
of ridicule for the grossly misplaced contestants has been ratcheted up to a
point where the show itself is parody. No comic or sketch troupe could touch
this show because it is in itself, untouchable. No rational person could
tell me that the first few batches of super-star wannabees are not selected
from the human "dollar-box" and deliberately brought in to display their
unfathomable lack of ability for the given venue. Viewers enjoy watching
people who make me sound like Sinatra, humiliate themselves on national
television and then be roundly discharged by a group of smug, and in some
cases apparently mildly intoxicated, judges. The audience howls and you can
almost discern a quake across the American landscape. Like most trends, this
began small and grew large, but we wll know enough to be sure, they wouldn't
be doing it if it weren't what the viewers wanted. The ludicrous exhibition
has become part and parcel of the show, and Simon Cowell's responses are
awaited like a speech from the Pope.
This year, they have taken to bleeping out obscenities as the disgruntled
leave the stage and are filmed as they enter the backstage area. My nine and
ten year old boys are, I'm sure, well able to fill in the blanks now that
they have graduated from Playground 101. What worries me is the message
being sent to young kids about the treatment of others. It's not a mild joke
at someone else's expense, or a whoopie cushion. It is mean spirited
ridicule. It is luring clearly vulnerable people into an arena where the
outcome is well-known to everyone except them. Or maybe they do know and
don't care, or maybe the whole thing is staged, including the lurid
performance and sadistic response. I wonder if by next year, each judge will
have a basket of rotten fruit and vegetables by their side, or maybe darts
and the failed contestant can be physically, as well as emotionally, abused.
The one thing that I do know is that I am less and less comfortable with the
spirit of the show and what it tells my children. Humiliating people is fun,
and good. If you think you have talent, don't try to show it, because look
at how you might be treated. If you are a washed up musician or record
producer, there will always be a job for you at this show. Or, in the case
of Paula Abdul, even when you were big in the business, it was a marvel.
We hear the lament of parents at school over how their children are treated
in the classroom or in sports. Trying to impart to them the value of being a
good person and treating others as we would be treated ourselves. Think of
the hours you spend, or have spent, trying to shape your children into good
human beings with a solid sense of self, and then couple that with the image
of parents and children sitting around watching this sludge. And we're not
even getting into the fact that half of these viewers probably can't name
the Vice-President. American Idol? Hey, maybe I could be the next Taylor
Hicks, the question is, why would I want to?