Everyone is buzzing about finalist Chris Daughtry getting voted off ‘American Idol’ last night. It appears not many people saw it coming and now some are asking is the show’s voting rigged?
If you watched the show you saw Katharine McPhee’s jaw drop when she learned she was safe and Chris was undoubtedly shocked.
McPhee is now one of the top three, but based on Tuesday night’s performance of Elvis songs, she may have been the one who deserved to go.
There’s no doubt the girl can sing and she’s among the best of the show. But she struggled with some of the lyrics in her “Hound Dog/All Shook Up” performance. She admitted she dropped the lyrics and turned her back to the audience to try and cover it up.
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What did Simon say? "It hasn't been one of your best nights."
Daughtry, the only North Carolina finalist who remained on the show, sang "Suspicious Minds" and "A Little Less Conversation". His performance was solid, but it wasn’t enough to get him through to the next round.
“Chris you are going home tonight. The journey ends,” host Ryan Seacrest said.
When they showed a shot of the judges, Simon’s jaw dropped and Paula’s eyes filled with tears. Was it an act? That’s what some are thinking this morning.
On a local radio program one woman said she tried to vote for Chris all night Tuesday and never got through. She said she never got a busy signal and thought the show closed the line so people couldn’t vote.
Early voting in our unscientific poll on WCNC.com showed a majority of people think voting is rigged. Here are some of the comments posted from our users:
“I just think that America didn't want another NC person to win. I really think that Katharine should have went home.” – Jennifer
“I just think certain areas get blocked and are unable to get through.” – C. Phillips
“ABSOLUTELY! I thought it when Kellie was voted off but now I am 100% positive of it. Elliott Yamin should've been gone a long, long time ago. I will no longer watch American Idol and I hope the ratings drop and it has to go off the air. Chris Daughtry is a true idol and will do well without Idol. I tried to vote for him and the line stayed busy - I thought because he was getting so many votes, now I'm assuming it was rigged that way.” – Anonymous
"If last night's "America's vote" doesn't prove that this is rigged & the producers know all along who they want on the show, then I don't know what does?!!!" - LKT
Is voting rigged? I don’t think we’ll ever know for sure. Three talented singers remain and it’s anyone’s guess who will win.
Why is it when Pickler sang bad and got through no one complained yet when someone gets booted from NC all the conspiracy people come out. Get a freaking life people. Talk about no life losers!
I will never watch the show again. It is rigged. Katharine should have been gone long ago. Chris is one of the best and an idol himself.,
CHRIS WILL BE A STAR ANYWAY...BUT YES I DO BELIEVE THE VOTING CAN BE MANIPULATED...
Wrong-wrong-wrong!
Rigged for sure. I am not watching any more--Hope program goes off air. If judges interactions,i.e.,Simon n Paula, are admittingly staged, then why not results?
I thought katherine should have gone.everybody thinks she great but she not all that great. she bores me every time she sings. she might be okay for people that like doctor office music.If you are not sick,when you go in,you will be when come out.i think chris was great. i like to know who handle the calls prove to the fans it not RIGGED.
I don't know for sure, but something's not quite right with it. There is no way Chris should have been voted off when he was a favorite and most likely to end up until the end. I still think there is a some voter tampering because there is no way Taylor or Katherine should still be there versus Chris being voted off.
It's a "reality" show, so it can't be fake, right?
Um, sure.
Chris should have definitely stayed. McPhee should have left. They are only keeping her so they will have l girl and l guy for the final show to vote on.
Elliot is also a great singer!
But yes, it's got to be rigged!
Yes American Idol is rigged up I have no doubt in my mind I am very upset about yesterdays elimination and American Idol don't ever have to worry about me being one of the viewers again!!! Chris will go on and make millions of records I could care less who wins it now like Randy said on Ellen it will be a male so they already have a good idea that Taylor is the next american idol which he is good I won't take that away from him but goodbye to american idol I will Never watch it again.
I am glad that Chris was voted off. I did not like him because he sounds the same on everything and he was arrogant. I think that it is a popularity contest and not talent because they voted off two of the best singers!!! Mandisa and Paris should have been still there. Taylor has a great attitude and so does Katharine and Elliot. Out of who's left, Elliot should be the next idol, but please get him some dance lessons. I like his humbleness and HE CAN SING ANYTHING!!!
this has been the first time that i have watched an american idol season up to this point.i agree that the voting was rigged. katherine should have been voted off. will not watch anymore!!!! chris was the best!!!
While I agree that Katharine should have been the one to go, I think Chris nailed the hole in his coffin with the last two notes of the 2nd song he sang. I know there are a lot of Elvis fans out there and for him to add that little rocker scream at the end of the song did not sit well with me and I know probably upset a lot of Elvis fans. It was something totally unnecessary and unfitting to an otherwise pretty good performance.
Well I voted for Chris 6 times via text and ditto Elliott. So I can't say it is rigged but Fox is definitely playing favorites. Please someone explain then why Fox chose that actress (?) to stage the fake "gee, I sure would love to hear Taylor sing Jailhouse Rock again". That gives Taylor an edge going forward given none of the other singers had the same opportunity. Fox chose to do this well in advance so it wasn't ad libbed. Taylor definitely has the personality but isn't this supposed to be about singing talent. Chris, by far, was the best this year. Rock on Chris!!
maybe the town was doing cingular texting? thru there phone carrier. why don't you go up there and do a story crying foul like you did in albemarle. that never was brought up when clay and fantasia who have charlotte connections were on the show! just my opinion.
Are you kidding me??? After Clay AIken I knew it NOW I know it is rigged. My wife got me hooked on"idol" now I am not so sure. I am a little disappointed on how bad this makes the show look. I am done after this season.... Go Taylor....
This is for G
I agree Pickler got through when she should not have and I said that at the time. But, are you deaf!!!!! Do you not know talent when you see or hear it. TAR
I don't think it's rigged...,I think the people are voting more towards popularity as opposed to talent! It was a shock to a lot of people including myself. Chris was one of my favorites but I have NO doubt that he'll take off in the music business!
I don't think it was rigged. Everyone needed to have a base for votes. Perhaps Chris' fans didn't vote or vote often enough. We voted for our fav and when the phone lines were busy (with all the votes they get, they can be) we text voted which never is busy. That is how, I beleive, alot of people's votes get through. On the cell phone when you tried to vote the system was busy or the line was busy (ditto for the land line phones, the circuits were busy and so was the number). But text messages were never busy and we voted and voted and voted.
No rigging. And, perhaps Chris' fans were too complacent and thought others would vote as well. If based on the number of votes, every vote counts. Also, did you check out the anti Idol website, are they voting for those you love to hate?
Rigged? No way! "American Idol" is 100% real... just like pro wrestling, three-card monte, and NASCAR...
Chris was/is BORING!!! America voted and did it right. It's over...get used to it. Chris is GONE!!!
Has anyone noticed, that more of the "losers" have been successful than the "winners" have? That, in and of itself shows that the "voting" doesn't seem to reflect reality.
I would think it was rigged, but I felt for certain, it was rigged for Chris to win. He has the chance to sing last more than anyone else and I only recall him singing first once. I think it is rigged by the position people sing, the comments given by the judges and coaches and the interviews before the performances - those are edited. However, the votes are not. I think everyone was honestly shocked yesterday because they wanted Chris to win. Those who think it is rigged for Taylor, remember the comments that Simon gave him early on. They weren't that flattering.
Ok, here's the deal guys. I'm not so sure about them rigging votes. However, I do think they persuade. Go back and think of all the past winners. Different sexes, different races and different genres. Except no white male. Keeping the variety keeps more viewers, thus keeps more people paying for commercials during AI. They do want a male to win this year. You can tell it with their comments. Again, think back on the past several shows. They have had all men guest stars and had to sing music written for men. It's hard for anyone to sing a song written for the opposite sex. Alright, it gets deeper than that. Last year's final two was country female, rocker male. So, those are out, can't repeat last year. And through all of the years, there have been so many people from North Carolina and the South in general. They are trying to keep variety to keep the viewers at a maximum.
We go through this every season! A heavy favorite gets voted off early and the cries of a rigged competition come about. Let's just face it...Chris got the lowest votes. Just because a lot of people liked him (myself included), does not mean that he could not get voted off. And just because someone keeps getting busy signals, does not mean that they are getting the most votes. Each of the remainining contestants has a large number of fans.
I was wondering if anyone else had that problem - I tried for the entire time and couldn't get through to vote for Chris. I was just sure it was because so many people were voting for him! What's the story?
I also agree that he will be a big star!
There is no way Chris should have been voted offlast night. You know the votes are rigged when someone that sings as good as he does goes before Katherine whom only sings some songs good. I listen to what Simon says because he really knows his stuff.
McPhee should have been gone a long time ago - the only reason she 'survived' is that she is getting all the 13 y.o. girl votes and the dirty old men votes. It might have been rigged or not - hope american idol will see the rumor and respond to it according. FYI: I think if she pops out of her blouse - she would have been named queen of american idol. As far as the winner - I have been a Taylor fan since his audition - like his style, his voice and his love for the music. I hope he wins!!
I FIND IT PRETTY INTERESTING THAT NO ONE HAD AN ISSUE ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT THE VOTING IS BEING RIGGED WHEN THE ONLY TWO BLACK CONTESTANTS WERE VOTED OFF. MANDISA HAD THE BEST VOICE AND THE MOST TALENT OF ALL OF THE CONTESTANTS.
I GET SICK OF WHITE PEOPLE ALWAYS WHINING WHEN THINGS DON'T GO THERE WAY. BUT IT'S OK FOR THINGS TO FALL APART FOR OTHER RACES. EVERYONE ON THIS SITE KNOWS THAT THIS IS THE TRUTH! WHETHER OR NOT YOU WANT TO ADMIT IT!
I believe the voting is manipulated. This is a TV show first and foremost. They are only interested in ratings. If Elliott or Katherine had been voted off last night, no one would be talking about it today because that was expected. Everybody is talking about it today, however, because the person least expected to go is gone. I will never believe that's the way America voted!
Once again, I find it rather sad that with everything going on in the world, a few people still have to treat American Idol like it was like the second coming of Jesus. PEOPLE... PLEASE MOVE ON FROM THIS STUPID GARBAGE!
Amy; Can't you see thru the smoke and mirrors. FOX is a genuis... this is the equivalent of a non-sports fan acting like a sports fan, we pull for the hometown gal, then the homestate guy, then the person that's most like us (male/female, black, white,etc) just like we root for our Panthers. Only one thing I never feel like drinking beer and hanging with the guys to watch this garbage!
Amy; it's a show like any other. It doesn't matter if its JR getting shot or Chris getting "voted-off" it all about ratings. And besides, if Chris is that good the locals will still support him and he WILL get a record contact... so all is well in the world. :)
at the end of each show it says something that producers have control and last say on all voting
Last week I stayed on the phone for the whole 2 hours trying to vote for Paris....I was sure that she received alot of votes because of that and she got voted off. Now I'm sure that the voting is rigged, because the same thing happen this week when I tried to vote for Chris....Fox, what are you doing? Taylor is a 'showman', but far from being the best singer. Katherine is the better singer and I hope that she wins.
Watch the credits of ANY reality show closely and you will see disclaimers about producers having the final say, or something of a similar nature. While audience participation is a large part of the draw for these types of shows, the network and producers still must create a sense of drama and unpredictability to continually create buzz and retain viewers. Publicity is publicity, whether good or bad it is still important to keep everyone talking about the show.
Reality shows are just meant as entertainment, they should not be taken too seriously.
TO ncla: That's pretty much calling the kettle black wouldn't you say? Nothing racist about it so don't even go there and get me started on this issue.
Come on....this is not a racial thing. I get so darn tired of everything coming down to racism. Let's see....Rueben...Fantasia...Get the point?
Well, it does seem that the ones that win (with the exception of Kelly Clarkson) don't do as well in the
real world as the ones voted off. So maybe the voting is rigged somehow.
If the voting isn't rigged, how do explain the win by Fantasia in the previous season?
It has to be rigged.
The success or dimise of a television show depends purely on ratings. If the producers of "Idol", along with the television audience, voted for the obvious talent week after week we would all become complacent, bored and switch channels. Shaking up the norm has keep soap operas and "rasslin" on television for decades. Sounds like the producers of "Idol" have taken a page straight from the soap/rasslin playbook for success...Hey folks..That's entertainment..
I'm Glad That Chris Is Gone.He Just Can't Sing.When Thay Voting Bucky Off Then The Show Was Dead To Me.
I will never watch American Idol again! Ray Charles could have seen that it's rigged! Fox has lost a lot of credibility because of this - I hope the show is cancelled!!
I DISAGREE WITH NCLA ABOUT THE RACE ISSUE. I THINK THE MAJORITY OF THE VIEWERS THAT VOTE ARE WHITE ANGLO-SAXON AMERICANS. SHE IS RIGHT ABOUT MANDISA AND PARIS, THEY WERE WITHOUT A DOUBT THE MOST TALENTED WOMAN ON THE SHOW SINCE THE BEGINNING. I ALSO BELIEVE THAT CHRIS WAS SUCH A FAVORITE TO WIN THAT SOME OF HIS FANS MAY HAVE VOTED FOR THEIR 2ND FAVORITE.
American Idol is definatley rigged! Eliott Yamin just got eliminated last night and I was so shocked, I nearly passed out!! All the good singers are now out,Paris,Chris,Eliott!!This sucks and I think Taylor sucks!!!
Conspiracy threory - The "very close" vote percentages are due to the fact that there aren't enough phone lines to support the voting and the percentage actually represent the number of votes "that got through" for each of the contestants.
...just a theory...or is it.
I agree, I don't think it is rigged, but it is a popularity contest. The good people(Mandisa, Paris, Elliot, Chris, I think Lisa) are voted off .McPhee is good, but some songs are only ok. I don't think Taylor is that good, but he has a good personality. It is SO a popularity contest!
Anyone without hearing problems KNOWS Chris was the best singer by far. How he got voted off is pure Speculation and if Idol was in on it they certainly wouldn't let you and I know. Stranger things have happened with voting... particularly Bush getting elected!
I agree w/ Bob. It is SO a popularity contest....