American Idol: The Aftermath

I am a die-hard fan of American Idol. I am thisclose to being obsessed with it. And I’m not sorry.

Which is why watching (and recapping) the Primetime Live episode dealing with the rise and fall of Paula’s alleged affair with Corey Clark was easily the most difficult chore I’ve had in my career with RealityNewsOnline/Foxes On Idol.

I mean, trust me, I’m not delusional. Does the idea of a judge in a competition getting involved with a contestant shock me? No, absolutely not. I just don’t want that kind of chicanery happening on my show! I watched Scott Savol’s improbable rise to success come to an end and appreciated what he gave us. I also watched the flowers being given to Paula (via Randy and Simon), and felt myself as a part of those circling wagons. Silly ABC. How could they make such ridiculous claims?

Then I watched Primetime Live with an open mind and an open heart, like Trenyce asked us too.

I believe Corey Clark.

I believe him. Everything he said. Well, maybe not everything. I don’t think his motives are as innocent as he tried to make them. I think he knows he has a potentially big payday coming from all this. I’m not sure why he thinks this will help his music career. But more on that later.

I want to talk about Paula. I’d love to talk to Paula. I’d like to tell her that she broke my heart as much as she broke Corey’s. She took Santa Claus from me, and the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy, in one fell swoop. She made my show dirty, and I’m angry about it. Oh, I’ll keep watching, of course. As long as there are starry-eyed Kelly Clarksons gazing in disbelief with confetti falling around them. As long as there are Rubens singing in front of a choir, or teary Fantasias looking heavenward, I’ll be watching.

But, man, Paula, you made a mess of things. Haven’t you?

You all may be thinking: Sting, how can you take the word of a known liar? Well, even a broken watch tells the truth twice a day. There is a LOT of evidence against Paula. Too much. Let’s recap: the medicine bottle, the paper with the phone number, the phone records, he knew her dogs’ names, he pointed out the house she was in, he described the inside of her house (even the dog ramp), the cellphone guy identified them, friends saw them looking conspicuous at a club, there was a photo of them together, one friend heard her voice on the phone, his parents knew about it and had taken her calls to him, and Nasheka Siddall knew later on too, she says.

That’s a lot of smoke to be no fire!

There are also the phone messages. There was Paula, sounding annoyed, "Hi Corey, this is Paula. Call me back." Corey, this is Paula? Sounds a bit familiar, I mean, if she hadn’t seen him since he was disqualified, wouldn’t it be, "Corey, this is Paula Abdul from American Idol or something like that?

The next message, left just last week, is even more damning: "if reporters try to talk to you, say absolutely nothing. That’s what you do. This is crazy – I don’t know what its regarding, but something is going on. Okay? I hope you’re doing well."

Say nothing. Why is Corey not allowed to talk to the press if there isn’t something to hide? She knew what was going on alright. If there is nothing to say, why would Corey need to be told to say nothing? Why would she have his phone number anyway? Does Simon know Kimberly Caldwell’s phone number? Does Randy have Rickey Smith’s phone number?

What is funny is that there is another story out there that a phone conversation between she and Corey is doctored. While Paula was in the press exclaiming "a-ha!" Primetime Live didn’t even use it. They apparently didn’t have to.

ABC News is as reputable as a network news division can be. It actually fact-checks. It does not air what it can not verify. There is plenty of room for debate about ABC’s motives for producing and airing this tawdry expose’, but the answer is as obvious as the your darkest thoughts. It took advantage of an opportunity to take the monster down. Or at least bring it to its knees for awhile, during sweeps.