Has Simon Seen The Light?
American Idol Commentary by
Ron Lemon and Eleanor Meilinger
March 3, 2005
A couple of days ago I wrote..."It struck me as out of character that Simon had nothing mean to say last night, or Monday night. Why? Has he seen the light? I hope so."
RTVC Staff Writer Eleanor Meilinger thinks there is a more sinister motive....I'll let her explain.
You wondered if Simon had seen the light and was curbing his cruel tongue in response to his critics. I'll go on record right now with a bet that once the regular season begins we'll have the old Simon back - with a vengeance.
He has noted that in past seasons the American public has put under-qualified contestants through based solely on the fact that Simon was mean to them.
Janay and Constantine just go to prove that sometimes the American public get it wrong all by themselves!
Simon was furious that his "superior knowledge of the music industry" counted for so little when people were casting their votes. Now he has figured out how to play it to his advantage.
When FOX runs a promotional spot for a new Reality Show that will be premiering soon fans are now saying "so what" and "why bother?" These promos are asking us to make a commitment to watch a show. Not just the next episode but the entire series. Fans don't watch just one episode of elimination based Reality TV. They make a commitment to see it through to the end. They invest time and emotion into the show. They become involved with the characters. They hope to see one eliminated in shame and another triumph in glory.
The actions of the FOX network have made it clear they don't care about the fan. For FOX the commitment is one sided. They will continue to ask you to watch their latest reality offering and then disregard your commitment and pull the plug if the ratings are not quickly what they desire. They have repeatedly demonstrated that they have no respect for the people they are trying to sell their shows to. And the audience is losing respect for FOX. Viewers are not going to keep tuning into new shows when they know the network will not honor the commitment it makes when it asks the viewer to watch the series. It's like being lied to, and people don't like that.
Viewers have come to understand that FOX will do this again and again, and they aren't going to bother trying the new FOX shows. Why should they?
If you watch closely you will notice that at the times you would expect Simon to unleash both barrels and he instead holds back, he either echoes something sugary Paula said or offers uninspired compliments of his own - all the while grinning like a fox. He thinks that if he curtails his criticism at this point the voters will do the right thing and make their selection based on talent rather than misplaced sympathy. Just keep your eye on him! I'm not sure that he'll ever cop to it but there is no doubt in my mind. How else can you justify some of his dubious words of encouragement? Sometimes he even glances at the other two judges and takes a deep breath to fortify himself in order to make these statements that so go against his nature? Simon is a clever fellow and figured out how to get his way without ruffling feathers. After all, it is in his best interest to see the best candidates make it to the finals. His future earnings are on the line!
Eleanor may be right. But I still think Simon is easing up. It may not be sincere, he may well prefer to blast away with both barrels but I think he is trying to be kinder and gentler and here is why. Simon has huge ego. But he is also smart. I believe his motivations are greed and fame and in that order. And I think he is smart enough to know that the outcry after last weeks exceptionally cruel results show signalled a potential dip in the ratings. And that was not worth the joy he could take from his "I don't mean to be rude BUT...." schtick. I think he has seen the light, for his own selfish reasons.
Time will tell which of us is right. But regardless, it's one more reason to watch the show.
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