American Idol Buzz Meter

May 2009 Buzz and June Forecast

Despite automakers hurtling towards bankruptcy court and unemployment lines breaking quarter-century records, a strange unfamiliar air of optimism wafted in as economists spoke of an end to the recession, swine flu proved less deadly, and even the Hubble Telescope got a tune-up. In lighter news, runner-ups became front-page news (but winners still count on the sports pages). Here now the buzz that was, May 2009 edition, followed by a June buzz forecast:

On the Docket This Month
Given Guantanamo's legal complications, President Barack Obama's pick for Supreme Court justice pick must've been a walk in the park. Sonia Sotomayor, a George H.W. Bush's appellate-judge appointee, was the only person on Obama's short list that he "didn't know personally," but their legal minds turned out to be in accord. More reluctant candidates for the court system were automakers Chrysler and GM, and their bankrupcty woes have rippled to dealerships across North America. Meanwhile, California's Proposition 8 proponents prevailed in the state's Superior Court, but the same-sex marriage issue is making strange legal bedfellows: The opposing lawyers in Bush v. Gore have filed a federal lawsuit arguing same-sex marriage ban is unconstitutional.

The Race for Second Place
Double trouble, Susan Boyle bubbled in a meltdown over mean reporters. Human reaction aside, her Cinderella tale set the world abuzz, and her runner-up status on "Britain's Most Talented" put her in "contrarian" company with odds-on favorite Adam Lambert on "American Idol." Their drama though couldn't quite compare to Miss California Carrie Prejean and her soapy drama involving missing tops in lingerie photos, pageant master Donald Trump's forgiveness, and past pageant contestants expressing outrage (resigning Miss California pageant director Shanna Moakler) and support (Alaska governor Sarah Palin). The only time winning counted was the ring with Manny Pacquiao, at the races with Kentucky Derby's longshot Mine That Bird and the Preakness's first-time filly winner (in 85 years) Rachel Alexandra, and in "Jon & Kate Plus 8" ratings thanks to dysfunction gone tabloid.

Will Gay Pride Month may get marriage-minded (June 1-30)... Conan gets to sleep earlier (1)... Not just another graduation speech for Barack Obama (4) ... The Belmont Stakes are high (6)... Salute the flag (14) ... Expect energetic conversation at the EU Summit (18-19) ... Leave the ties at the store for Poppa (25)... Dubious honors for ugly canine mugs (26).

The Idol Finale in Search Questions

So there we were Wednesday night, ensconced on the couch for the "American Idol" finale. We're West Coast here at the Buzz, so we'd already peeked online to see who won. But once that question had been answered, we still had a host of things to wonder about as the finale unfolded.

Idol faithful, dabblers, and even sneering holdouts had their own burning search questions about Fergie's height and Rod Stewart's wives. (We expect that it was the holdouts responsible for the wee rise in "who is kris allen" lookups.)

Searchers more familiar with the Adam vs. Kris duel tried to make sense of the results. "Why did adam lambert lose," wailed some. Others asked, "how many votes did kris allen win by."

We felt a pang of sympathy when we saw the spikes on "what happened to david cook's brother" and "did david cook's brother die." Adam Cook's battle with brain cancer was a familiar story to Idol fans in 2008, but Idol dabblers likely missed the news that Adam (the inspiration for David Cook's performance of "Permanent" at the finale) died this past May 2.

Perhaps the biggest search question for this entire Idol season was "is adam lambert gay." Of course finale night saw a reprise of that already-old chestnut of a query. Fascination with the love lives of both Adam and Kris reverberated: "is adam lambert straight," "is kris allen gay," "is kris allen married," "who is adam lambert dating," and "does kris allen have children."

Speaking of children, we weren't alone in thinking that Carrie Underwood's dress had a hint of baby bump ("is carrie underwood pregnant?").

After Adam Lambert finished up his lovely rendition of "Beth," users quickly got their answer to "who sings beth" - it's KISS. And whenever KISS shows up, a spike on "how long is gene simmons's tongue" can't be far behind. The wide and thickly-made up men of Detroit Rock City also prompted queries about "what does KISS stand for" and "KISS band member names."

Another buzz tradition: Whenever there's a parade of music legends on TV, you can bet that viewers will want to know how old those legends are ("how old is lionel Richie," "how old is gene simmons," "how old is cyndi lauper," "how old is [banjo legend!] steve martin").

By far the most fascinating oldster to take the stage was the plaid-clad, slippery-stepped Rod Stewart, who inspired such variations on the theme as "rod stewart age," "rod stewart birth date," "when was rod stewart born," and - our personal favorite - the overly specific "how old is rod stewart currently." We can report that at 6:30 PST on the night of Wednesday, May 20, Rod Stewart was (if the Internet can be trusted, that is) 64 years, four months, and 18 days old, give or take an hour or two. We cannot, however, confirm the common search suspicion about Stewart's state of mind: "rod stewart drunk." But we will admit to wondering the same thing ourselves.

In the hours after the big upset, some viewers needed to remind themselves: "what does the american idol win." A true source of debate, now that presumptive American Idol Adam Lambert has officially lost his crown. But — as Chris Daughtry and Jennifer Hudson can attest, the "official" American Idol isn't the only one who wins.

Idol Talk: Reviving the Southern Dynasty

In the end, the South rose again.

In the last possible moment, Kris Allen made "American Idol" history—or perhaps reinforced it. The numbers and judges may have been with Adam Lambert, but Allen once again showed that the Cinderella storyline could rally the American South and the heartland.

Even the city slickers at the Los Angeles Times see Allen's win as bringing "the show back to its original premise," that of someone from nowhere rising to the top while remaining true to him or herself. As for the Arkansas Online, the hometown news outlet calls Allen the "neighbor, fellow churchgoer and friend."

As for supporters of the more polished Lambert, Newsday points out, as so many other "Idol" pundits have, that the runner-up took the news just fine and "doesn't really need the show's voters to validate" his readiness to be a star.

Season 8 messed up our projection record (at least we had three in a row), although we did talk of upsets. Below, a congrats to all "Idol" winners past and present, from wherever they hail. Note the only non-Southerner was Season 6 Jordin Sparks, an Arizona resident born in New York.

"American Idol" Winners (and Birthplace)

1. Kelly Clarkson (Texas)
2. Ruben Studdard (Alabama)
3. Fantasia Barrino (North Carolina)
4. Carrie Underwood (Oklahoma)
5. Taylor Hicks (Alabama)
6. Jordin Sparks (New York)
7. David Cook (Texas)
8. Kris Allen (Arkansas)

Idol Talk: Standouts in Songs, Performances, and Height

In the eighth bid to be the next "American Idol," one Search question rises above the rest: "how tall is adam lambert."

Well, one pressing question among many. The Fox producers rotated Lambert and Kris Allen three times with machine efficiency on Tuesday performance night. Drama was restricted to the vocals, although the Arkansas contender got Simon Cowell's belated blessing of his worthiness to be onstage.

People went online to evaluate the contestants, the songs, and judge Kara DioGuardia's songwriting abilities. Below, "Idol" performance curiosities, questions, and some true winners that emerged that night:

Top "Idol" Searches, Performance Night

• Favored Song: "Mad World" (sung by Lambert)
• Original Singer: Marvin Gaye ("What's Going On," sung by Allen), closely followed by Sam Cooke ("A Change is Gonna Come," sung by Lambert)
• Meh Reaction of the Night: "No Boundaries," sung by both contestants and written by judge DioGuardi
• Most Popular Judge: Paula Abdul, who looks like she really used her home tanning booth before the show
• Questions of the Night: "is adam lambert gay" (ambiguous) and "how tall is adam lambert" (6' 1" per IMDB, about two inches taller than Jordin Sparks)
• Most Searched Contestant Among Core "Idol" Fans (women 35-64): Lambert by more than threefold

Idol Talk: Upsetting Talk

If a contest looks lopsided, then there's only one way to drag out the "American Idol" suspense: talk of upsets!

Adam Lambert rocks his rival in terms of online affection and sheer buzz. Kris Allen is no slouch, but he's got less than a third of the frontrunner's searches.

If any upsets are going to happen, they will have to be seen on performance night. And if the final two's chill attitude is to be believed, all the theories about home states, the Christian vote, and Katy Perry's plug don't matter compared to raw onstage talent. Besides, the "American Idol" 2009 tour tickets already went on sale May 9.

But really, the winner's already decided: Despite a dip, "American Idol" still holds onto the ratings crown.