Hey, SUE BRODY, Look you were quoted at MTV….I bolded it….lol
‘What does their faith have to do with singing?’ one commenter asks.
We learned two things about “American Idol” fans last week when we ran a story on how this year’s show features more Christian-affiliated finalists than ever before: Most of you don’t care what religion a singer is as long as they’re good, and the rest of you think even pointing out religion on “Idol” is “absolutely outrageous.”
Hundreds of comments flooded MTV.com and other sites that re-posted the story, and they ran the gamut from “good job!” to, well, not so good job. (Comments have been edited for grammar, clarity and length.)
“What does their faith have to do with singing?” Selena1 asked on MTV.com. “Christians sing in their churches all the time in America. … If someone does it every week, sometimes a couple of nights, then imagine the practice they get compared to others who don’t. … So of course you get a lot of singers with Christian backgrounds who are not pros but have no fear to get up and sing in front of groups.”
Then there was MTV reader Gchata, who wondered if the implied math of “Christian viewers + Christian contestants = a potential Christian winner” would work for gay contestants or any other group: “Does this really matter? Yeah, a lot of Christians watch ‘American Idol.’ They also watch ‘24,’ ‘Heroes’ and, on occasion, MTV. Having Christian people on the show doesn’t mean Christians are more inclined to watch because someone with their ‘values’ or ‘morals’ might win. I’m a Christian, and I personally don’t care if the person who wins is or not. It’s a singing competition. Religion is a non-issue.” Over at MJsBigBlog.com, one of the leading “Idol” fan sites, the discussion about the story was fierce, with nearly 150 responses. Commenter Tess said she was “appalled and offended” by the article. Tess had particular scorn for a comment from writer CJ Casciotta, who was quoted in the story as saying he thought some Christian viewers might go with their faith if presented with a top two featuring a pair of equally talented singers in which one was Christian and the other was not. “If I wasn’t a sane, God-loving individual, I would not vote for any of the listed contestants (Danny, Michael, Kris, Scott, Matt and Lil) just out of pure spite,” Jess wrote. “I knew the country was going to be divided on this issue, but for the Christian right to pronounce that they support an us-vs.-them philosophy is absolutely outrageous.” Many readers vehemently stated that they thought religion should remain a personal, private matter, not fodder for stories, while others, like Lys, said they don’t feel that the singers should have to hide their beliefs “any more than they should hide their hair color. If it’s truly a part of who they are and if they want to talk about it, fine.”
On a similar note, Terrie felt that the show’s “pimping” of performers’ religions is not different from their spotlight on the singers’ families “or personal challenges or favoring more attractive contestants.”
A number of readers were put off by a comment from one of the story’s subjects, Christian writer Joanne Brokaw, who suggested that viewers could sense Kris Allen’s faith when it was mentioned that he helped other contestants last week.
“Are Christians the only people allowed to help others???” Baxter asked.
The site’s founder, MJ Santilli, also sounded off, saying she was offended by “nearly all the quotes” in the article (thank you, I think?) and pointed out that the show has long featured Christian contestants (which the article mentioned).
Speaking to MTV News on Tuesday (March 17), Santilli said she felt the same way many of her readers did about the piece. “I think coming so soon after the presidential election, maybe some people are feeling that ‘Idol’ themselves might be setting up this kind of divisive … us-vs.-them mentality,” she said of a possible Danny Gokey vs. Adam Lambert showdown. “I think the comments were split between people who can’t stand religion and others who were churchgoers who didn’t like that idea that, ‘I’m a Christian, and just because I am, I won’t vote for [a non-Christian].’ ”
Maybe CFIdolsFan said it best with the comment “I’m a Christian and a worship leader. I’ve watched ‘Idol’ since season one, and I vote for whoever I want, whenever I want, however I want. … Neither Casciotta or Brokaw speak for me, but I am not ashamed to say that I am Christian and am delighted to see Christians on the show.”
On JoesPlaceBlog.com, commenter Suebrody said, in some ways, all the comments missed the real point of the reality singing competition, a sentiment that was shared by a number of other posters. “I am a non-Christian and would hope the viewers are open-minded enough to vote for the best singer, not the most religious one.”
Read the Rest of This MTV Story HERE
My thoughts on this topic are actually really simple. I could give a crap what someone’s religion is, or if they are religious at all. This is a singing competition, and I like the best singers & best personalities. If they are religious great, and if not, thats fine too.
OMG. I AM FAMOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I know!!! Isn’t it the coolest thing ever!
I am currently circulating the link to your blog for the unfamiliar.
(I guess that’s what my, er, focus on the program gets me….)
Thank you for doing that Sue! And, Sue, why don’t you write me a recap so I can post it?
What kind of recap do you mean? Of the article? (BTW, I am the last person posted, and your blog URL is highlighted, which is even more cool. Look how famous you and your blog are now!!!)
lol… A recap of the performance shows and who you think is getting the boot each week.
Oh, cool! Sure, I’d like to do that. I used to do that for So You Think You Can Dance, and it would be fun to do it for you guys, too.
Wow, this is awesome.
Thank you, Sue! That would be so awesome! Just email it to me and I will post it.
Some people get offended too easily.
Sue said it best i hope someone gets votes simply because they are the best not because they are the most religious whether that religion is christianity or hindu. I am a christian but I could give a crap on who is the best based on their beliefs I will admit I like seeing people that are genuine do well i.e. kris, scott, and yes even Adam. I think that whatever Adam’s preferances are, are his business and no-one elses and it would forshame me of fellow believers if they refused to vote for him simply because of a rumored lifestyle that by no means has actually came out of his mouth… and as for my fave i really like Kris because of his style and voice. He has been pitchy in the past I admit but I have heard him prior to idol and know for a fact that this show hasn’t even begun to tap his true talent yet. I hope Danney and Adam both make it to the top 2 for the simple reason I believe that they are truley the two best this season as far as polished singers go Adam has the best stage presence and I just love the soul in dokey’s voice (the raspyness does it in)
Adam is gay actually, there are picture and when he was interviewed about the pictures he said: “I’m just staying true to myself.” So their not rumours. And gaydar! I can’t believe so many people still doubt it, doesn’t everyone have a gaydar? I’m sick of people saying that he isn’t because he IS gay but why should that throw people off? WHO CARES? I’m a Christian and I think that it’s none of people’s concern. If you hate him, your actually only hating yourself because your putting anger on yourself. I’m sick of seeing so many mean comments about Adam all over YouTube. Because guess what? Those people will be the ones in trouble later on. Do they really think that they can talk about someone so badly because they are gay? I don’t see any of that in the Bible. Everyone should just leave him alone – hate comments.
Simple question – why the hell would anyone be offended that someone is religious or that it is casually mentioned on the show? No one is preaching hell, fire, and damnation on the show. No one is trying to convert or judge anybody.
I don’t think anyone is truly offended by that. If they are, someone needs to grow some thicker skin and accept that religion is just one more thing that makes us a little different. And some are just mad because they think it might hurt one of their favorites.
And voting based on religion? I guess some do that, but people vote based on a lot of things. Some vote on looks, some vote on genre, some vote on personality, and some thankfully vote on talent. I’ve even seen some gay guy say he will vote FOR a gay contestant, so that goes both ways.
Why is religion less valid than, say, looks or what kind of record someone will make? I think all these reasons outside of talent are ridiculous, but religion is no less valid than these other ridiculous reasons. You might think Adam’s smoldering looks are cool. Well, guess what. Some people think being a Christian is cool, so deal with it.
One more thing – Joe says that she votes in part based on personality. I’m sure that many complaining also vote based on personality. Well, then you are way off base here if you vote on personality. Christianity forms an integral part of someone’s personality. If you vote based on that, you have no cause to complain that someone’s religion is mentioned. At most, you can simply say that YOU PERSONALLY don’t think that’s an important personality trait.
It’s no less valid than the fact that Adam is a stage actor or that Lil is a mother. Unless you are going to get rid of all these things from the show, then it’s just sour grapes when you extract and nitpick something like religion.
I would like to get further info.Thank you.
Interesting points! I was actually thinking about this topic last night and this morning (particularly how to incorporate it into my own blog). Thanks for the tips, bro!