There's an onslaught of reality entertainment shows going on over our local terrestial and satellite television stations at the moment. More than any other country would have ever had at any one time, I think. But despite what they claim about these shows being "real" talent competitions, the reality is that these shows are more of an approval rating or popularity contest than anything else. I doubt the public as a group is capable of assessing talent objectively like those who have been involved in the industry for years, or decades for that matter. Hence, any unearthing of talents would have actually taken place way before any of the so-called "real" stage of the competition begins, i.e. during the audition stage. After that, week after week it's all about which contestant has more appeal (and not necessarily by means of talent) to the masses out there to garner enough votes to keep them alive in the competition. But that's just exactly how the entertainment business works, isn't it? Talent alone is not enough (or in William Hung's case, even necessary!) to guarantee a place in the industry. It has happened before on American Idol, it is happening right now in Akademi Fantasia and we can pretty much be assured that it's going to be the same on case on Malaysian Idol as well. Irregardless, I reckon it's currently THE way for the music industry to generate money once again, especially in the face of piracy and all. If you're in the music industry, wouldn't you want to make money without even having to cut an album out upfront and risk bad album sales, piracy and all?