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American Idol continues to be a contest based on popularity and not raw talent. I believe there is two major reasons that Sanjaya remains on American Idol. First and foremost is the primary demographic for American Idol, which is teenage girls. They are the majority of the voters. They are the ones who stay up long after the show is over to make their phone calls. Is it really any wonder that this type of audience would find this young man to be so appealing? While his vocal ability is not on par with the rest of the contestants, he does have that "Donnie Osmond" appeal. He is just what adolescent girls are interested in, long hair, beautiful eyes, innocent demeanor, and a gleaming smile. I suspect that this young man will end up in the top five.

The second reason that Sanjaya is still in this competition has more to do with our desire as human beings to form a bond with each other. While watching this competition, from the beginning, impressions are made of each contestant. Filming is done of their families and their personal lives. We begin, we believe, to see what each idol is about. We become "friends" with these people. We begin to become their cheerleaders not because of their musical ability, but because they appear genuine and ordinary. We want them to succeed because if they do, that means there is also hope for the rest of us. We take these Idol contestants into our heart and hope they achieve greatness.

I suspect what will eventually separate Sanjaya from the rest of the Idol contestants is as the contest dwindles down, the audience will not have enough time to learn and bond with the remaining contestants. As the contest nears the end, it is more likely that the top three will actually be the top vocalists and not necessarily the ones we have become attached to.

Learn more about this author, Karyn Tomaski.
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