In one of the most shocking eliminations in show history, the American Idol viewers voted off stand-out Pia Toscano.
Despite being a favorite of judges Jennifer Lopez, Steven Tyler and Randy Jackson, she garnered the lowest amount of votes. And since the judges already used their one save to keep the talented but odd Casey Abrams, there was nothing they could do.
So, bye bye, Pia.
Sort of.
By making the Top 10, she’s guaranteed a spot in the lucrative annual concert tour. She’ll continue to make business under the American Idol banner and has been the beneficiary of hours of nationwide TV exposure.
Know why I’m so confident her talent can rise above a reality show injustice?
Chris Daughtry.
Perhaps my favorite contestant the show has ever had, he was also cut too early in his season. Should I mention his countless hit records that came after American Idol? He’s become a legitimate rock star and hitmaker, crossing between light rock, hard rock, alternative, pop and country. Versatile, popular, successful.
Pia, use Daughtry as an example.
And if you don’t want to follow the rocker, may I mention Jennifer Hudson? While she only made it to 7th place, she has gone on to become one of reality TV’s true success stories. She’s won an Oscar, a Grammy, a Golden Globe and more. She’s a pop culture touchstone (not quite an icon yet), product endorser and an all-around entertainer.
Being released from Idol isn’t the end…just the beginning.
Bonus – here is Pia’s farewell song, “I’ll Stand By You” by The Pretenders:
“Sports Night” was perhaps my favorite TV show of all time.
It aired in the late 1990s and was about an ESPN-like TV show. It was a time in my life when that was the career path I thought I was headed down. [Turns out, I spent a summer working in sports TV before turning to sports PR, and now social media. Go fig.]
As the series wound towards the end of it’s criminally-short 45-episode run, a mystery man appeared as a company named Quo Vadimus was looking to buy the show’s network.
In a touching scene, the man confesses to Executive Producer, “Dana, I’m what the world considers to be a phenomenally succesful man, and I’ve failed much more than I’ve succeeded. And each time I fail, I get my people together, and I say, “Where are we going?” And it starts to get better.”
That line provides an “ah-ha” moment – in order to succeed, you have to be willing to fail. You see, “quo vadimus” translates to “where are we going?”
In the social media world, the risk of failure is high.
Your brand or company or personal reputation is on the line every time you blog, post, Tweet, share, like, recommend, buzz, or any other social action. Everything you say is inviting feedback from your detractors. Everything you post is open to criticism.
However, the rewards are also high.
Every interaction could create a new customer, or make a fan more loyal. Every update is an opportunity to take your brand to another level.
But in order to try to get the rewards, you have to play the game.
And if you fail, dust yourself off and ask yourself, where are we going? And try again.
Facebook founder and head honcho Mark Zuckerberg appeared on “Saturday Night Live” on January 29, alongside Jesse Eisenberg, who portrayed him in “The Social Network” and Andy Samberg who has parodied him on the show before. (Yes, there were a ton of “Bergs” in this segment.)
It was an important public appearance for the reserved Zuckerberg.
Showing a sense of humor – including the ability to laugh at himself – on a national stage will be good for his image.
Also, by appearing on the show alongside Eisenberg, he gave somewhat of a blessing to the movie that (allegedly) tells the story of Facebook’s creation. Headed into “Oscars Season,” that good prove to be a tremendous boost to the film’s already-fantastic chances at winning the award for Best Picture.
Just a few quick thoughts on Wednesday’s American Idol season 10 premiere!
- Nice video package at the start distinctly NOT mentioning Simon Cowell’s name. (Or should we call him “He Who Shall Not Be Named?”
- Sometimes, it’s REALLY hard to tell Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler apart when they are sitting next to each other.
- Man, I would feel bad for Randy Jackson…but he’s making some serious coin for this gig. I mean, people CRIED because they were in the presence of J-Lo!
- I do like that the focus was on GOOD Idol auditions, not bad ones. It was a funny running joke for the first several seasons, but definitely wore out it’s welcome.
- I seriously miss He Who Shall Not Be Named. His lack of presence was felt.
- If this season becomes the lovey-dovey season without a voice of tough-love reason, I may have to stop watching Idol.
- Wait – was that a Constantine Maroulis sighting at the beginning? No chyron, either? Yeesh…only one of the most popular contestants of all time and a Broadway star…
- Does anyone TRULY care about the music director? Sorry, but I just don’t.
- Here is my favorite audition/story of the episode:
The basic premise was that you answered questions to win spins on the randomized electronic board, filled with cash and wonderful prizes. Easy peazy, right?
Well, there was a caveat…a pretty big one.
The Whammy!
You see, the board was littered with “Whammys,” little red monsters that ate your bounty, leaving you with nothing.
Take a look:
It wasn’t fair…you could earn tens of thousands of dollars in cash, trips, appliances over the entire game, and lose it all by hitting a Whammy. And if you accrued four Whammys during the game, you were eliminated.
Real Life Whammys
In the PR world, we do everything we can to help clients avoid that public image Whammy.
We try to present our clients in the best light possible, gathering positive sentiment and brand loyalty like all the cash and prizes the contestants tried to win. But, if the client hits a Whammy, it can end right then and there.
But it is perhaps the most classic “Whammy” story of all time.
Greatest golfer of all time. A brand unto himself. Gorgeous wife. Beautiful kids. Adoration of millions. Jealousy from fellow competitors. An American icon. One of the most powerful and influential people in the world.
And on Thanksgiving 2009, he lost it all. The sex scandals, the rehab, the divorce, the struggle to return to form.
He has spent 2010 living a nightmare and trying to wake up from his year-long funk. He may never return to form or marketability or public appeal.
One small step for the brand, one giant leap for Social Media!
Think about it. There was a Twitter feed that was so funny that a broadcast TV network green-lit (that’s insider lingo for “approved”) a prime-time comedy based on it! Seriously, that is a tremendous accomplishment for the online world.
And, hey, millions of people seem to like it, or at least forget to change the channel when it comes on after “The Big Bang Theory.” Good on ya.
8 – The Bed Intruder
Only in a Social Media Universe can an attempted rape become transformed into an auto-tuned music sensation (available on iTunes, of course!)
7 – Dead Cats and Horrible Marketing
A Chipotle employee apparently ran over a cat, killing it dead. DEAD!!!!!
Normally, that wouldn’t make much of an impact on our lives, would it?
But in 2010, this became a wild online phenomenon, involving a major corporation and a cover-up that would make Richard Nixon blush.
Of all the great 1980s movies, Back to the Future ranks ridiculously high on the list. And even better, in my opinion, was the sequel, Back to the Future II!
In the second installment, Marty McFly and Doc Brown travel from the present day of 1985 into the far-off future of 2015, complete with hoverboards, auto-sizing jackets and an almanac of every sporting game ever!
British website TotalFilm sent out a Tweet in early July claiming that July 6, 2010 was the day featured in the futuristic movie, and even coined the #FutureDay hashtag.
Countless people Tweeted and ReTweeted about how awesome it was to compare what they saw around them with what was predicted in the movie.
Somewhere along the way, Betty White has become the coolest woman in America.
It was somewhere between the original airings of Golden Girls and the time Lifetime started showing the reruns.
Well into her late-80s, she has become even more beloved than ever before and a Snickers commercial during the Super Bowl begat a Facebook campaign aimed to convince NBC to let her host Saturday Night Live.
She rode a wave of popular support and within a few months, was saying “we’ve got a great show…stick around, we’ll be right back!”
So how did she do?
Well, if this doesn’t make you laugh, you may be considered dead in 47 states.
4 – Sue Sylvester Gets Vogue!
Hit TV shows don’t NEED social media to survive.
Sure, LOST became an iconic piece of pop culture, in no small part to online communities and recaps and discussions. Sports events enjoy the real-time conversation and stored clips that social media can provide, too.
But glee took full advantage of the buzz social media can provide when they previewed Sue Sylvester’s Fauxdonna performance of “Vogue” before the Madonna tribute episode aired. The conversations went from living room to laptop, as people searched for the video and turned the upcoming episode into a mega hit.
Unfortunately, FOX has removed the video from just about everywhere legal, so I can’t post it here.
But after seeing a 15 second clip, millions of people went searching for the full version.
Big win.
3 – “The Social Network”
Earlier in our list, we discussed a prime time TV show stemming from Social Media.
But 2010 also gave us a major Hollywood feature film from the industry: “The Social Network.”
The movie tells the Facebook origin story. Now, I’m sure there were some facts and events that may have been presented with a traditional Hollywood twist.
But, in all honesty, the fact that people came to learn more about the network’s roots is incredible. Worldwide, the film has grossed nearly $190 million, turning a tremendous profit on it’s $50 million budget.
It wasn’t the greatest movie I’ve ever seen, but it shows once again how important Social Media became in our lives this year.
2 – The GAP Logo Debacle
One of the hidden talents of social media is the communal panic attack for nothing all that big.
Exhibit A: A clothing retailer changes their logo and Twitter explodes, bloggers go apeshit and relative sanity flies completely out the window.
The volume of disdain was so loud, the company restored the original logo (with a few subtle cosmetic changes), as I discussed here.
So was this a case study in crowdsourcing? Was it a rouse from the start?
Honestly, I don’t really care. It’s a logo featured on the tag of shirts. Big whoop.
But Social Media was the winner here – the people made their voice heard and made a difference in this company’s business decisions.
1 – Smell Like A Man!
This TV commercial started it all:
What followed will go down in history as the most memorable social media campaign of 2010.
Old Spice had the star of the commercials spend two days responding to Tweets, e-mails and blog posts with VIDEOS! Yes, a customized video response to your question.
He made videos for celebrities, average folks – and even a guy trying to propose to his girlfriend!
Here is an excerpt from my July 13 post on why this campaign was so awesome:
1) Character: The star is Isaiah Mustafa, who is also the pitchman in the current TV campaign Old Spice is running. Having him record these spots shows that this initiative is important to the company.
2) Instant: Each video has the same talent, costume (as it were) and set, with limited props. They are all also less than :60 each, so incredibly quick to film and turnaround. Shot with a single camera and no special effects, the only reason they would need multiple takes is if Mustafa busts out laughing on set, which I’m sure happened more than a few times. With the quick production time, the video can be relevant and timely.
3) Funny: The writing is incredible. Pitch-perfect for the character…full of wit, double entendres, and complete over-the-top arrogance.
4) Viral: Every video is housed on YouTube and can be instantly shared across multiple platforms. Users can embed it in blogs (see above!), so the YouTube video gets the views while people share it around the world. And because they have the TV star in a short, funny manner, people WANT to share it!
Those are 9 Social Media Moments from 2010 – what others left an impression on you?
2 – The GAP Logo Debacle
