To the voting public of American Idol:  Huh?

Granted Carly Smithson has been taking heat from Simon for weeks, her performance on Tuesday should have been enough to put her through to the next round.  In fact, that song proved that she can have a great time, perform, and not feel like she is trying too hard to impress everyone.  In fact, even Simon liked it (for once).

Instead of picking the person who blew it (Brooke White) or the guy that has no business making it this far (Jason Castro), you pick one of the two females that have some real talent and chance of making it in the music industry.

But there is an obvious reason why Brooke made it through:  She has a huge following based off of her looks and previous performances.

In fact, one forum I participate on continually has post about how “hot” Brooke is.  Of course, most of these guys are 18-23, single, and “living life” so to speak.  But this may have had a lot to do with who all continues to vote for her.

Had this been the first time she has slipped on her performance, it might be a little more easily forgiven.  However, this is a second time.

Brooke’s following is that similar to viral marketing techniques.  Consider it a “bandwagon” mentality of followers.  Her popularity has spread quite rapidly since Hollywood week was over.  Her fans have been contagious in how they promote her looks and talent, as is evident by the buzz on the Internet and now the voting.  Through this viral spreading of her fan base, the show became about popularity and not about performances (especially recent performances).  Brooke is talented…just not the most talented this week.

One good thing did come out of this week:  It left hope for a finale with the two real superstars of this season:  David Cook and David Archuleta.