subversion on american idol
stuart hall, expounding on cultural studies, says that mass media is a tool of the all-powerful elite into forcing the masses into a contented submission. but no, he says this does not happen all the time because we DO reject the machinations of the mass media.
hall says people ACCEPT media messages wholesale, NEGOTIATE them, or totally REJECT them.
this is why i adore jason castro of american idol, saboteur extraorinaire, who was ultimately booted off the show. not the best singer of the lot, i know (except for his "somewhere over the rainbow" which gave me chills). let us note the ways he was sabotaging himself, and the show:
1) in a show featuring clean-cut all-american guys, his hair was in dreadlocks (go, dude!) and refused to get rid off them (unlike half-filipina contestant jasmine trias, who removed the trademark flower from her hair after simon cowell urged her to).
2) he chose songs he wanted to sing, even though nobody ever heard of them before (his version of 'halleluiah' catapulted that little-known leonard cohen song into a top itunes download).
3) he cheerfully and impolitely mimicked ryan seacrest on camera, saying "this.... is american idol!
see him do that here: http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=SL2UT74N4fc
4) he was caught YAWNING openly on camera! ( a no-no, even in classrooms)
5) he mouthed the words DON'T VOTE on-camera while seacrest was reading off his numbers.
he denied it, but catch him doing so on: http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=gPcpWwcJJoI
6) did he really forget the lyrics to "mr tambourine man" on purpose because he wanted to leave the show? simon cowell thought so.
see the entertainment online article at :
http://www.eonline.com/uberblog/b135726_no_tank_job_jason_castro.html
in a show as carefully tended, glossy, and superficial as american idol, there is no space for a jason castro, who dances and prances around gleefully, makes faces, does not take the show as seriously as the producers think he should, and appears to loathe the production numbers (complete with the dorky dancing). subversive! saboteur! no wonder the producers wanted the guy out of there.
see the village voice article:
http://blogs.villagevoice.com/statusainthood/archives/2008/05/american_idol_w_12.php
what do you think?
ms wowie