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Nowhere are bigotry, racism and sexism more noticeable than in the media. The only way a Latino woman can star in a prime time show is if she allows herself to be called "ugly'. New game shows are popping up everyday. Is it only me or does anyone else see the glaring absence of any hosts who are not male and white?. Bigotry has raised its ugly head on the so called "family' show, American Idol, and is expressed by the hosts, the producers and the idol voters with impunity. It stands out more in American Idol due to the huge popularity of a show that reaches millions of young people worldwide. It is almost as if we all agree that bigotry is okay, it doesn't matter, it is American Idol.

So we allow Idol judges, Simon and Paula, in particular, to make nasty or favorable comments, overtly or covertly, about the appearances of Idol contestants. They either need to lose weight, change the color of their hair, dress differently or look better physically, otherwise they can't be an American Idol. Then there are the stomach turning swoons over contestants, male and female, over their looks. I am tired of hearing comments like "you have such a pretty face", or "it doesn't matter (whether you can sing or not) you look good", "I like your face", "you have such a sweet face". It goes on and on. And when there is nothing good to say about the contestant's performance, positive comments about their looks and appearance save the day.

Our children, who make up a large percentage of the viewing audience, learn quickly that unless they are beautiful or good looking, by media standards, all they can hope for in the future, as far as the entertainment business is concerned, is to be another "Ugly Betty", and they only have place for one.

American idol judges can also be quite subtle in their disdain for the "Ugly contestants". They continually find fault with their singing ability as an excuse to rid the show and the viewing public of the torture of having to endure looking at these contestants for weeks on end. Take Frenchie, season 2 contestant, she was booted for racy photos that appeared on the Internet. Was it the photos or was it because, despite the fact that she was mega talented, she was black and she was "overweight", according to media standards. So when the photos emerged, it was a great opportunity to boot her. There were many scandals since Frenchie
but they were not booted by the show, they were allowed to continue until votes determined whether

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