The producers of American Idol have finally given Joanna Pacitti something to cry about. On Wednesday night it looked like the two-time major label signee was in Idol’s Top 36. But less than two hours after last night’s episode aired, Fox made a surprise announcement: “It has been determined that Joanna Pacitti is ineligible to continue in the competition. Felicia Barton has replaced Ms. Pacitti as part of the Top 36.”
So when did they decide to cut her? Was Star‘s article about her friends at 19 Entertainment the final straw? Did pushing her through Hollywood week despite her horrible performance look shady in context? If so, why did they keep her in last night’s episode? While the Top 36 were picked weeks ago, they still could have edited her out of the program. But by airing the episode as created, and making the announcement almost immediately after, Fox can pray that the story will die down by next week’s episode, and that fans who don’t pay attention to web gossip will miss the drama.
While we’ve obviously questioned whether Pacitti deserved to be there, disqualifying her now “to avoid the appearance of impropriety” seems a little facetious. Should they have let America decide whether she stays or goes?
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