case of the x

10Nov09

X Factor. I can’t believe I am going to write a post about a show that I don’t even watch.

On Sunday night, I watched CSI Sunday with The Mechanic and checked in on Facebook. With amusement, I noted that the majority of status updates adorning my newsfeed expressed anger and outrage at Simon Cowell’s decision to “go to DEADLOCK” and put Lucie and The Twins (Jedward, apparently) up to the public vote. Their futures on the show boiled down to people calling in and registering support for the act they felt should stay.

The result: Lucie was given her marching orders and booted off the show; Jon and Edward live to murder another pop song.

Now, the thing that gets me about this is that everybody is up in arms about it, apparently. Fans blasted the result with 3,000 people complaining to ITV; 11,000 joined a Facebook group called “Boycott the X Factor”. Ofcom has announced that it is going to investigate. The UK press has leapt on it, with news reports all over the papers, from The Usual Tabloid Suspects like The Sun to high-brow titles such as The Guardian.

Fans complain that The Twins shouldn’t be in the competition, that it’s a farce. This is a singing competition, they moan, and, while they may be entertaining, The Twins can’t sing. They don’t deserve to be up on that stage. They should be removed from the show.

I see their argument and, to an extent, I agree. The Twins don’t “deserve” to be there because they have the musical talent of a cuttlefish. And even that’s taking a pot shot at the cuttlefish.

But The Great British Public shouldn’t be getting angry with Simon Cowell about it.

Cowell deliberately let the decision go to DEADLOCK because it made business sense: why make the decision easy when you can take the other option, the one that sees those £ signs racking up for ITV as Dumbfuck Joe Blogs picks up the phone and casts his vote? And it sure as hell makes for better television that way too: you know, with that wicked sound clip they have for DEADLOCK and the way Dermot says: “Right guys, that takes us to – [quick breath in] – DEADLOCK!” And suddenly Dermot’s walking around the stage in a dreadful hurry with a Very Serious Look on his face; Everything sounds extremely urgent, like the end of the world is nigh or something.

The Great British Public only has itself to blame. Is this lost on everyone else? At the end of the day, the people watching the show voted to keep Jon and Edward. It’s not like Simon Cowell turned around and actually sent Lucie home. He gave the viewers the choice and they chose not to vote for her. The majority of callers chose to waste their money voting for Jedward. That is democracy for you, the power of free speech.

Jedward won fair and square so the Great British Public should quit bleating on about it like they didn’t have a say in the matter.

It’s all corrupt! I mean, what a load of utter codswallop.

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