Viewers accuse ‘American Idol’ of exploiting Claudia Conway for odds: ‘disgusting’

The big hype leading up to Sunday American Idol Season 19 premiere centered on the audition of Claudia Conway, the 16-year-old daughter of former Donald Trump advisor Kellyanne Conway. Claudia insisted, both on her recently reactivated Twitter account and on screen in the hearing room, that Idol was an “incredible opportunity” for her to establish her own identity and pursue her long-held dream of going from TikTok star to pop star; Claudia’s lawyer, Father George, who accompanied her to the Idol together, even said in tears on Sunday that he “couldn’t imagine anything that would make her happier than doing that.”

But Claudia’s reaction to television was nonetheless immediate, intense… and not unwarranted. After an uninterrupted torrent of protests on Twitter Sunday night, this outrage was distilled into a widely tweeted Variety Editorial titled “How ‘American Idol’ Used Claudia Conway.”

Many viewers and experts accused American Idol to exploit a vulnerable young girl for the odds, or just wonder if Claudia, despite her raw talents, would have had that much screen time (or any screen time at all), let alone a ticket gold for Hollywood, if his parents hadn’t been. prominent political figures. (After Claudia’s first song attempt didn’t go so well, the judges, especially Katy Perry, seemed so eager to say yes that they actually asked her to sing a second song, the coaching pretty handy. of Perry giving slightly better results.)

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Other critics naturally criticized American Idol for humanizing and normalizing the behavior of Kellyanne, who made headlines not only for his role as an accomplice in the Trump administration, but for allegedly physically and emotionally abusing Claudia. Sundays Idol episode, Claudia said, “When your mother works for the President of the United States, with whom you strongly disagree, it’s difficult,” but she and Kellyanne mostly played down their “family drama” – insisting that they love each other like any other quarrel blamed on the mother and the incorrigible teenage daughter, and that they “agree to disagree”, even though their relationship is currently “uncertain”. Claudia’s audition was even preceded by a cheerful video pep talk from her supportive mother – although this alleged feel-good moment actually felt positively dystopian, as tiny Claudia stood by the shadow of a digital wall the size of a Big Brother billboard. of Kellyanne’s smiling, pixelated face.

Conway’s ‘family drama’ has played out in real time on Claudia’s social media for the past two years (2.5 million fans combined on TikTok, Twitter and Instagram are following his posts protesting against his political beliefs. parents) – so much so that when Claudia appeared on Idol On Sunday, a worried Perry asked him, “Are you okay?” and “Does your mother still kiss you?” In August, Claudia had indicated that she was looking for a volunteer family lawyer so that she could emancipate herself “from years of trauma and childhood abuse”; Shortly after, she announced that she was taking a “mental health break” from social media. On the same day that Claudia’s break was announced, Kellyanne and George Conway issued statements announcing their resignation from their respective positions, so that they could “devote more time to family matters.” Claudia then responded on a live TikTok broadcast, saying her parents’ gesture was “not genuine” and admitting that her sanity was at an all-time low.

Claudia American Idol The audition was filmed in November 2020, and judging by the flattering edit she and her parents received this week, everything seemed calm, or relatively calm, in Conway’s camp at that time. But family dynamics have apparently become even more toxic in recent months, which Idol Critics question whether it was appropriate to air Claudia’s audition in February 2021. Last month, Claudia posted TikTok videos, which racked up millions of views before being deleted, which appeared to show Kellyanne working to scream and become physically violent with her. In one video, Claudia claimed that child protection services “interviewed my whole family and they didn’t do shit. Pierre from Child Protective Services, if you look at this, you let me down.

One week later (and less than three weeks before American Idol premiere date), Kellyanne seemed to be tweeting a topless photo of Claudia with revenge; Claudia later confirmed the photo was genuine, but said Kellyanne’s Twitter post was accidental, saying, “I guess my mom took a photo of it to use against me one day and then someone l ‘got hacked or something, “and” I know my mom would never, ever post anything that intentionally hurt me like that, and I believe she was hacked. Claudia said she and her mother would handle the situation privately and that she would “never” talk about it to the press.

Sunday, Claudia insisted on American Idol judges (including Luke Bryan, the only judge who voted do not to get it across): “Now I want to get out of controversy, out of drama, out of politics anyway, and let people know that I’m a singer and that’s what I want to do.” But she Idol appearance seems to have done little to quell the controversy that constantly surrounds it. Controversy certainly makes television buzzing, so expect Claudia, who is already actively promoted in Season 19 teaser videos, to receive a lot more screen time during Hollywood Week. (In a recent interview with Insider TV, Mentor Bobby Bones was asked how many interactions he had with Claudia in Hollywood, to which he replied laconically, “A lot, actually. I’ll just say it was interesting. “)

But if Claudia is Idol participation is a genuine attempt for her to take control of her narrative and her destiny and start an exciting ‘new chapter’ in her life, or a disturbing case of child exploitation for odds and publicity, remains to have. Apparently it’s … American Idol in 2021.

Representatives for ABC and Fremantle did not respond to Yahoo Entertainment’s request for comment.

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