David Archuleta and David Cook Headlines Today 5/19/08

‘American Idol’: “Idol” psychics pick a David
And the next ” American Idol” is David. But David who? Not everyone agrees on which David will win Wednesday night.

The winner: David Archuleta. There’s no question David Cook is a far more original and versatile performer than his young opponent, but as Randy has told “Archie” so often, “Dude, you can sing the phone book.” Add to that Archie’s devoted legion of prepubescent and postmenopausal fans. And then there’s this year’s coronation song, which is bound to be more syrupy than a bottle of Mrs. Butterworth’s. No one serves up syrup sweeter than Archuleta. We can already imagine his dad saying, “Pour it on.” - via Newsday.com

Was Jeff Archuleta Banned from Idol for Trying to Make a Side Deal?
We told you last week that Jeff Archuleta had been banned from backstage at Idol for various reasons, including TMZ’s story that he cost the show lots of money when he changed some lyrics to son David Archuleta’s song. The National Ledger now reports that the last straw that got Stage Dad from Hell banned was the fact that he tried to make a side deal with one of Idol’s sponsors while they were on a video shoot. Apparently, Jeff may have tried to get an endorsement deal for David and harassed the sponsors. via Vote For The Worst

David Archuleta's dad
No, "Idol" producers weren't really that upset that rumors about Jeff Archuleta's backstage managing of his talented son seeped out.

All talk about the show is good talk about the show, after all. Ratings don't measure whether viewers like a show - just whether they watch.

The Jeff Archuleta story got its first big bump from country singer Naomi Judd on NBC's "Today."

She had been a judge on "Star Search" when Archuleta was a contestant, and she offered this during an interview that turned to an "Idol" discussion: "But I want to give a shout-out to his dad: Leave him alone. His dad was like the - you know that. His dad is like the worst stage dad."

Word came last week that Jeff Archuleta had been banned from backstage after his addition of lyrics to one of his son's songs cost producers money. via jsonline.com

David vs. David
Even if David “wonder teen” Archuleta vs. David “the Rocker” Cook is the most predictable “American Idol” finale matchup in the show’s seven-season history, that doesn’t mean the outcome is a slam dunk.

While we’re pretty sure the next “Idol’ will be named David (yeah, we’re smart like that), viewers still have to choose if they want their winner to be the squeaky-clean, angelic Archuleta or the mysterious and scruffy Cook. via Twin Cities.com

Whichever David wins, ‘Idol’ needs an overhaul next year

We were told this would be the strongest group of contestants we’ve ever seen on “American Idol.” It wasn’t.

We were promised that after last year’s disappointing installment, the show would come back strong. It didn’t.

And now, with this week’s “Idol” season finale, we’re supposed to be excited about the prospect of David Archuleta squaring off against David Cook. Sorry, but we’re not.

This was seen as a make-or-break year for “American Idol,” and right now the “Idol” model seems broken. via Detroit News