New ‘Idol’ Season Shows Mean Streak

Even the juggling was pathetic.” With that cutting blow, Simon Cowell ended Jason Anderson‘s moment in the spotlight. Anderson, all of 16, stormed out of his “American Idol” audition into his family’s arms, obscenities flowing as freely as the tears.

High school can be vicious enough. But not as nasty as Cowell, who also told the would-be singer/juggler that he “summed up Minneapolis, mate – useless.”

The “American Idol” juggernaut has become ever more popular in this, its sixth season. But it sure seems meaner, too. At least that’s the talk this week as the judges – not just the acerbic Cowell, but the usually genial Randy Jackson and the kind but loopy Paula Abdul – up the torture quotient, taking train-wreck TV viewing to a whole new level.

Young or old, pretty or ugly, male or female: No category of contestant has been spared in this week’s audition coverage. The judges have even taken swipes at contestants behind their backs, making snide remarks after the singers have left. “Obnoxious,” Cowell sniffed of one who’d just been voted into the next round. “What a strange guy,” Jackson said of another.

Rosie O’Donnell Attacks American Idol on The View:

And if you argue the contestants are asking for it by merely deciding to appear, consider the supportive boss of Dayna Dooley, who flew her and her sister to Minneapolis from California, so strongly did he believe in her singing. After panning her performance, the panel repeatedly insinuated to Dooley that she was inappropriately involved with her boss. Then they called the nice man in, told him his employee was “terrible,” and proceeded to make the same insinuation to him – while his wife sat just outside the room.

“It just seems like they’re being a lot meaner,” says Jessica Rhode. She should know. After the 21-year-old makeup artist was given a thumbs-down by the panel, she collapsed to her knees and wept, begging the judges for some constructive advice. “It would take an hour,” Cowell retorted. He told her to be happy: Now she could move on, knowing she’d never be a singer.

“That was the worst thing, in my opinion,” Rhode said in a telephone interview. “I expected at least one of them to say something nice. I was like, is this really necessary?”

The cruelest moment undoubtedly came in Seattle, where a spirited young man named Kenneth Briggs, who liked to compare himself to Justin Timberlake , was told by Cowell: “You look a little odd … you look like one of those creatures that live in the jungle, with those massive eyes … a bush baby.” Once he left, the three judges were shown cracking up hysterically at the “bush baby” remark.

Their behavior brought a rebuke from the hosts of ABC’s “The View.” “The whole thing, it’s terribly sad to me,” said moderator Rosie O’Donnell.

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New ‘Idol’ Season Shows Mean Streak

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