The American Idol Phenomenon
Did you know that the first season of American debuted less than five years ago? It made its premiere on June 11, 2002. The show quickly became a talking point “around the water cooler” as people discussed the singing ability of the contestants still on the show and debated who should be cut. and sent home below.
When the season finale aired on September 4, 2002, the Fox network realized they had a very successful show. The other networks weren’t worried. Not yet, anyway. Although that has changed. The other networks are no longer trying to compete against American Idol and are hoping their Tuesday and Wednesday night shows that air at the same time as American Idol will drop in ratings. Dancing with the Stars, another popular show where viewers can vote on who stays and who goes home, will not air its next season on Tuesday and Wednesday nights like it has in the past. They are going to broadcast their show on Monday nights and their results will be shown on Tuesday nights and the Tuesday night broadcast time will be right after American Idol ends.
American Idol is now the number one show in America, by far. In fact, they could lose half their viewership on any given night and still be in the top 10 shows on TV.
Not watching the show can put people at a social disadvantage because discussion of the show is a hot topic almost anywhere a person goes. That’s why I started watching it in the second season. I was sick of everyone I knew talking about it and feeling like I was an outcast because I didn’t know anything about the show. Now, I am addicted to it just like millions of other Americans. And the irony is that the concept of American Idol did not originate in the United States.
American Idol is based on a British television show called Pop Idol. And yes, Simon Cowell was part of Pop Idol. Simon, along with Simon Fuller, developed Pop Idol and later brought the concept to the United States as American Idol.
Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul, and Ryan Seacrest have all been a part of the show since it first aired, but did you know that Ryan had a co-host in the first season? His name was Brian Dunkleman. Brian left after the first season. He was unhappy with his role on the show, the producers were unhappy with his performance, and Simon Cowell openly criticized him. However, Dunkleman is involved with American Idol again. He does voice work on American Idol Rewind, a show that repeats everything that happened in past seasons of American Idol, you know, in case you missed it or want to watch it again.
But why has American Idol become the phenomenon that it is now? After all, it is not the first singing competition to be broadcast on television. Star Search had singing contests and was on the air for 12 years, but it never became a big hit. The key could be in the participation of the viewer. Star Search had some input, but only from the studio audience, while American Idol gives anyone with access to a phone the ability to be a part of deciding who goes and who stays. And the voting public makes 100 percent of the decision once the top 24 contestants are chosen. The judges get to speak their minds each week and hope the voters listen to them, but ultimately the viewers decide. I think that’s a big part of what has made American Idol so popular. Viewers can make the decisions. It gives viewers the feeling of control and power.
Along with the viewers who make the decision of who goes and who stays, are the contestants themselves. They’re ordinary people like you and me who happen to be talented singers, usually anyway, and haven’t been discovered yet. Also, the judges and producers have a good skill in not only choosing contestants who can sing, but also with personality, which makes the show very entertaining.
There are probably very few people living in the United States who haven’t heard of American Idol. You almost have to be living under a rock not to know these days. Is that good or bad? I think it’s okay. It’s a family show with no violence unless you count Ryan and Simon or Paula and Simon fighting.
The phenomenon shows no signs of slowing down. How much bigger can it get? Who knows? All we can do is wait and see.
