Ryan Seacrest: Thanks for the Lolz!

By On 02/13/2009 · 11 Comments · In Uncategorized

I just had to pull this out of today’s Headlines Thread.   There’s been very little comment from Idol insiders regarding the sudden 11th hour disqualifaction of Joanna Pacitti from the Top 36.

Yesterday, in the press line of the American Idol Experience VIP celebration, Ryan Seacrest weighed in:

à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“The producers do the background checks right around [the] Hollywood [round],” Seacrest said. “When they see something that stands out, they have to address it. And they saw something, and there was apparently some sort of a link that, somewhere along the line, could be construed as one thatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s close to the competition, and they didnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t want to risk it.”

From what I understand, the producers do background checks on the contestants before Hollywood week, which typically occurs in November.   That’s why there are usually a few lucky golden-ticket holders from the auditions who are told “nevermind” when they don’t check out to the producers’ satisfaction.

Anything negative in Joanna’s past would have been discovered back in the fall.   But of course, no background check was necessary to uncover what probably ended Joanna’s Idol run–her close ties to Idol executives Michelle Young and Roger Widynowski.

No, when the tabloid press found out about Joanna’s potential conflict of interest (as if they wouldn’t), I suspect TPTB decided the whole situation was too hot to handle.

So the producers disqualify Joanna, timing a last-minute dismissal for maximum press uproar. But, the producers don’t address the controversy–there’s no press conference from Ken Warwick or Cecile Frot-Coutaz.

Good soldier Ryan Seacrest addresses the issue instead–using the vaguest terms possible to protect the guilty, hinting that this is all news to TPTB–in an interview with Fox News, who are more than happy to carry the message.

Lolz! My eyes can’t roll back far enough into my head.

Meanwhile, Joanna is putting her experience as the one-who-is-dumped-right-before-showtime (at the age of 12, she was fired from the cast of “Annie” weeks before it opened on Broadway) to good use…

 
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  • http://www.myspace.com/gwendolyndiane GwendolynD

    Joanna Pacitti is getting entirely too much press.

    And, my poor Ry-Ry, talking about crap that he doesn’t know crap about.

    Do they really think we’re that stupid? :confused_wp:

  • http://widyatarina.wordpress.com widz

    I can’t help but think how genius it is – to announce the disqualification of Joanna Pacitti right after the original press release has been released/about to be released.

    Free publicity, I guess.

  • weareallinnocent

    BAER – BigASSEyeRoll, I agree MJ. :thumbdown_tb:

  • DivaE

    I was kinda thinking- they filmed that last episode last fall- and obviously filmed Joanna making it and Felicia “not”. They decided not to edit it or refilm it…now why didn’t those 19M people advise her that auditioning for this show was not a good idea for her? And chose to wait until after they showed the episode to make the announcement- I think Felicia has known for longer that she made it…

  • ilovetohateai

    Do they really think weà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢re that stupid?

    well they made it through their 8th year!

  • t2

    LOLZ indeed. Seriously, has anyone considered an Oscar for Mr. Seacrest. Is there a category for “Keeping a straight face while repeating utter unbelievable nonsense”?

  • ohreli

    Idol thrives on publicity. Simon Cowell probably orchestrated the whole thing to keep the “drama” and headlines coming. Just think for a minute of all the bizaare Paula headlines last year.

  • http://www.myspace.com/gwendolyndiane GwendolynD

    Do they really think weà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢re that stupid?

    well they made it through their 8th year!

    And, what an audience….

  • http://www.AuthorsTeam.com ghostwriter

    Great way to have your cake and eat it, too. Pacitti was the biggest newsmaker of this season for being a sequoia sized plant. And now she’s out– which brings more publicity. OTOH, if this is a strategy on the part of the producers, it isn’t working, since ratings are way down.

    IMHO, it was just stupidity on the producers part that she got as far as she did.

  • hypertwink

    I don’t like her but if there’s a way, I hope she sues them.

  • CRB

    Seacrest is functioning as corporate lackey for the show. This was a publicity stunt.