The British tabloids couldn't be happier. They love a good controversy and this one's as big as they come for a TV show. The image above is how the UK Mirror broke the story.
(Because it IS just a TV show, right? No? What is that you're saying? It's a viable employment search strategy? Only if you have very very tall hair and lots of energy and then you might just get a couple hit singles and a reality show but if you invest the proceeds properly it might send you to college.)
The thing is there are rules about such things because all these shows from Idol to AGT/BGT to X-Factor are ostensibly game shows and there are rules and laws that apply.
Now today there's word that Susan Boyle's first performance on Britain's Got Talent was manipulated to make her sound better which bring up the issue of the drama created when her second appearance on the show didn't go as well as the first. Basically it seems the show created the drama by manipulation of the performance alone, doesn't it?
AND ... if that's the case what happened in the finale (she lost to a dance crew) and afterward when there were reports of a tailspin in the fragile Boyle's psyche is particularly distressing.
This all broke in the London tabs because of this performance from Gamu Nhengu (CLIP) on the show this past week. On first listen I have to say that without knowing ahead of time I wouldn't have recognized the telltale signs of the Auto-Tune technology, that slightly robotic-sounding thing, especially noticeable during what Cheryl Cole calls her "quirky woo-hoo-hoos."
After Saturday's show viewers flocked to Twitter and Facebook to complain about the heavy-handed use of digital pitch effects – particularly on Gamu Nhengu's version of Walking on Sunshine, which she belted out with a spooky, computer-like precision, a bit like Mariah Carey impersonating Robocop. It seemed clear that Nhengu had been lined up as a favourite and this had been scripted as the big star-making moment.
I can see why producers (Cowell included) were interested in making her a favorite, she has a very compelling backstory (watch the clip for details).
Like everything in this world, it wasn't a problem until they got caught. Now it's a big problem, ethically, legally and if the audiences for these shows dwindle because of the news, financially.
And with Cowell working to bring X-Factor here for the 2011 season, someone better fix this.
Now would be a good time.
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