Love A Show But Hate The Star? [American Idol/DCINB ref.]

[carl stromberg]

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?sectio ... id=5163397

Love A Show But Hate The Star?

Mar. 29 - While fans scream and cry for Sanjaya Malakar, those who hate the contentious "American Idol" contestant will do just about anything to bring him down. Why are people obsessed with celeb hate?

There is a woman in Buffalo, N.Y., apparently starving herself right now in an effort to get Sanjaya Malakar kicked off "American Idol."

Yep, that's right, a hunger strike -- just like Ghandi.

Only it's not the fate of a billion Indians she's worried about, it's the fate of just one. And to be fair, he's actually Indian-American.

Identifying herself only as J on her MySpace page and in a video she posted to YouTube, the 23-year-old woman says she's sworn off food until Malakar, 17, is voted off the hit talent show.

"I'm going on a hunger strike," she says in a video posted March 16. "I'm doing this because I believe other talented contestants who deserve a chance to win are being eliminated."

With his boyish smile, eclectic hairdos and mediocre singing, Malakar is this year's "Idol" cause celebre. He is loved by some -- take 13-year-old Ashley Ferl, known as the "superfan," who was seen sobbing during one of his performances -- and hated by others.

J has spawned at least one other hunger-striking imitator and the show's toughest judge, Simon Cowell, has vowed to quit if Malakar wins.

Love him or hate him, Malakar has shown staying power. He narrowly beat elimination in the first weeks, but has since developed an ever stronger fan base. Some attribute his success to an Indian-American voting bloc, and others to a Web site devoted to destroying the show's credibility by encouraging people to vote for the program's least worthy contestant.

A young man, who has also pledged to starve until Malakar is voted off, posted a video on YouTube under the handle Idolmatt21.

"I'm not going to eat at all until he's voted off," he says in the video. "All I can say is," he says as he rips a photo of the singer in half, "Sanjaya, you're going down."

If you think these people are just bored with their lives, you're right, says one expert.

"Idle minds" -- that's idle, not idol -- "are the playground for the devil," said Stuart Fischoff, senior editor of the Journal of Media Psychology and a specialist in fan obsessions.

"A celebrity becomes a star to focus on with the telescope of boredom," Fischoff said.

Idolmatt21 didn't indicate there was a whole lot else going on in his life.

"I'm thinking," he says of starving himself over the outcome of a television show, "this is the best cause around."

Obsessive haters, or anti-fans, share many of the same traits as obsessive fans, Fischoff said.

"People need something on which to focus their attention. & The adrenaline gets pumping for hating as much as loving."

"The hate-love situation are two sides of the same coin," he said.

Being an anti-fan, he said, has one advantage over being a fan: It's more fun.

"Coteries on the net can join together in hating and dissing, and that's much more fun," he said.

If a celebrity is big enough to have a fan club, she's probably big enough to have an anti-fan club as well.

The Web is filled with anti-fan sites. More than 1,000 people regularly complain about the cooking-show host Rachael Ray at Rachael Ray Sucks Community on the social-networking site LiveJournal. The first rule for the site is "You must hate Rachael."

In the lead up to last year's new James Bond film, "Casino Royale," starring Daniel Craig, thousands of people flocked to danielcraigisnotbond.com to gripe about letting a blond play the British secret agent.

The Love Behind the Hate

According to Joshua Green, a postdoctoral researcher in the comparative media studies program at MIT, anti-fans are much more motivated by love than hate.

The people, he said, who complained about the Jar Jar Binks character in "Star Wars: The Phantom Menace" were motivated not by their hatred of the character but by their love of the franchise. They worried he sullied the franchise. Fans were similarly nervous about Craig playing Bond.

Green said J "really loves 'American Idol.' & She doesn't just dislike [Malakar]. These actions are motivated by the fact that she really loves the program. & She is worried about the detrimental effect his success has on the program."

Green believes J's extreme decision to stop eating is a reaction to the hype surrounding Malakar and the artifice of the media machine in the face of authentic talent.

The format of "American Idol," he said, allows someone like J to believe she can make a difference.

"The idea that she can make a change by starving herself is part of the way 'Idol' works. & People believe their actions can influence the program's outcome. & Starving is an extreme way to go about it, but she believes the 'Idol' machine will respond because that's the way 'Idol' works. It's different than if she decided to starve herself to get someone off a soap opera."

J was contacted by ABC News through her MySpace page. She would not further identify herself or supply any additional information confirming her hunger strike, but she agreed to answer questions via e-mail.

She said she didn't "hate" Malakar as a person, but resented efforts by some to sabotage the show by voting for him.

She really believes in the power of "American Idol," she said, and in its ability to connect Americans to their musical past and make stars out of worthy young people.

"With 'American Idol' younger viewers have a chance to experience the best music of the past with an updated style and fresh faces which are sometimes nice to look at. I've always loved that aspect of the show. I also really like how it can take an ordinary person and turn them into a superstar. Take Clay Aiken for example. Here is a guy who had a very hard childhood, got picked on constantly, but because of 'American Idol' discovering his amazing talent, he is now loved by hundreds of thousands," she wrote in an e-mail.

If fate has anything to do with the show's outcome, J is going to be hungry for at least a little while longer. Sanjaya, in Sanskrit, means "victory."

[Kristatos]

In the lead up to last year's new James Bond film, "Casino Royale," starring Daniel Craig, thousands of people flocked to danielcraigisnotbond.com to gripe about letting a blond play the British secret agent.

The Love Behind the Hate

According to Joshua Green, a postdoctoral researcher in the comparative media studies program at MIT, anti-fans are much more motivated by love than hate.

The people, he said, who complained about the Jar Jar Binks character in "Star Wars: The Phantom Menace" were motivated not by their hatred of the character but by their love of the franchise. They worried he sullied the franchise. Fans were similarly nervous about Craig playing Bond.

No, that can't be right. According to The Sweeney, people who don't like Craig aren't real Bond fans.

[stockslivevan]

I thought DCINB's 15 minutes were already up. 100+ members is hardly a dent.

[The Sweeney]

No, that can't be right. According to The Sweeney, people who don't like Craig aren't real Bond fans.

And according to you, people who like Craig aren't Bond fans either.....they are just Craig fans.

[Kristatos]

And according to you, people who like Craig aren't Bond fans either.....they are just Craig fans.

I've never said that. My coining of the word "Craigians" was a tongue in cheek comment on the way fans of Craig's Bond all seem to employ identical arguments - which share some characteristics of religions, with a myth of the fall (DAD), followed by a redeemer (Craig) - and their missionary zeal to convert everyone to their point of view, which reminds me of a religious cult.

[The Sweeney]

And according to you, people who like Craig aren't Bond fans either.....they are just Craig fans.

I've never said that. My coining of the word "Craigians" was a tongue in cheek comment on the way fans of Craig's Bond all seem to employ identical arguments - which share some characteristics of religions, with a myth of the fall (DAD), followed by a redeemer (Craig) - and their missionary zeal to convert everyone to their point of view, which reminds me of a religious cult.

Never thought of it that way before. All I can see is a film that was so shockingly awful (DAD) that I really thought the franchise was over. Then EON chose an actor who (even I admit) was controversial and difficult to come to terms with. Then they pull out all the stops to make the greatest Bond film ever, and suddenly the actor whom I had initial doubts over looks to be the greatest Bond since Connery.

If that makes me a missionary, a member of a religious cult in your eyes, then so be it.

In my eyes, I'm simply a Bond fan. Always have been, always will be (as long as EON don't stray down the DAD road ever again).

[Kristatos]

In my eyes, I'm simply a Bond fan. Always have been, always will be (as long as EON don't stray down the DAD road ever again).

I don't doubt your sincerity, even though I don't agree with your opinion of either Craig or DAD (which, while it's far from my favourite Bond film, I didn't find that bad).

Added on edit: I also don't have a problem with the fact that your opinion differs from mine. Such is the nature of debate, every Bond actor and Bond film has their fans and detractors. My problem is that your opinions seem to be shared by about 99% of Bond fans, and I'm in the other 1%. That's what drives me to seek refuge in a forum such as this one, for like-minded individuals. If the split was 50-50, or even 75-25, I probably wouldn't even be here.

[Captain Nash]

One of us...


You're just one step away Kristatos.

[The Sweeney]

In my eyes, I'm simply a Bond fan. Always have been, always will be (as long as EON don't stray down the DAD road ever again).

I don't doubt your sincerity, even though I don't agree with your opinion of either Craig or DAD (which, while it's far from my favourite Bond film, I didn't find that bad).

Added on edit: I also don't have a problem with the fact that your opinion differs from mine. Such is the nature of debate, every Bond actor and Bond film has their fans and detractors. My problem is that your opinions seem to be shared by about 99% of Bond fans, and I'm in the other 1%. That's what drives me to seek refuge in a forum such as this one, for like-minded individuals. If the split was 50-50, or even 75-25, I probably wouldn't even be here.

Very fair comment, and one that actually speaks volumes about this site, and in some way justifys its mere existence (if anyone ever questions it).

Kristatos, you should be the official spokesperson for this site. I have just nominated you.

Your comments alone will help the other Bond fans on other Bond sites to understand more why this site is here in the first place.

Good post!!

[Kristatos]

Very fair comment, and one that actually speaks volumes about this site, and in some way justifys its mere existence (if anyone ever questions it).

Thanks. That's why I get so ticked off by the comments on the home page about how "we speak for millions of Bond fans" etc. I think this site would have much more credibility if we just admitted that we were in the minority.

[Captain Nash]

In all seriousness a good post Kristatos.
You're not so indifferent you and me afterall.
I can understand where you're coming from, and agree with you on this one.

[Skywalker]

Such is the nature of debate, every Bond actor and Bond film has their fans and detractors. My problem is that your opinions seem to be shared by about 99% of Bond fans, and I'm in the other 1%. That's what drives me to seek refuge in a forum such as this one, for like-minded individuals. If the split was 50-50, or even 75-25, I probably wouldn't even be here.

I would say we are clearly in the minority at this moment in time, but things can easily change. I don't think the main title page reflects this forum. I and many others feel it gives the forum a bad perception, that does not reflect the opinions of most Anti-Craigers. I've stated my piece on my review, but at the same time understand the concerns and frustrations of others who do not conform to the majority.This site provides an opportunity to air my views without being swamped on by several members at once and denouncing my opinion.

[Captain Nash]

Such is the nature of debate, every Bond actor and Bond film has their fans and detractors. My problem is that your opinions seem to be shared by about 99% of Bond fans, and I'm in the other 1%. That's what drives me to seek refuge in a forum such as this one, for like-minded individuals. If the split was 50-50, or even 75-25, I probably wouldn't even be here.

I would say we are clearly in the minority at this moment in time, but things can easily change. I don't think the main title page reflects this forum. I and many others feel it gives the forum a bad perception, that does not reflect the opinions of most Anti-Craigers. I've stated my piece on my review, but at the same time understand the concerns and frustrations of others who do not conform to the majority.This site provides an opportunity to air my views without being swamped on by several members at once and denouncing my opinion.

It's not going to change. Not now, the boycott. The initial bad press is in the past. Forgotten. I've been talking to people recently...since the release of CR on dvd who were not even aware of any boycott or this site. By the time of Bond 22 any boycott will be old hat.

[Kristatos]

It's not going to change. Not now, the boycott. The initial bad press is in the past. Forgotten.

The public is fickle, though. As someone pointed out on another thread, the pattern seems to be building Bonds up, then knocking them down. It happened to Dalton, then Brosnan. Who's to say the critical and fan consensus won't turn against Craig once his successor is in the role?

[Captain Nash]

That's not what I'm saying though Kris...it most likely will, but for Bond 22 it's unlikely to happen looking at the way in which 99% of people have accepted Daniel Craig.

[Skywalker]

That's not what I'm saying though Kris...it most likely will, but for Bond 22 it's unlikely to happen looking at the way in which 99% of people have accepted Daniel Craig.

This 99% should not be taken literally as this is simply not the case. A high percentage granted, but I know there are plenty of other Bond fans who share my opinion, but for one reason or another will not post on this site.

[Kristatos]

I know there are plenty of other Bond fans who share my opinion, but for one reason or another will not post on this site.

Would those reasons have anything to do with the credibility problems I mentioned earlier? They almost put me off posting here, but I settled on posting my opinions whilst carefully guarding my anonymity. You have no idea how many times I've had to edit my posts before hitting "submit", to delete personal information that might have given away my true identity (I normally only ever post on forums using my real name).

[Skywalker]

I know there are plenty of other Bond fans who share my opinion, but for one reason or another will not post on this site.

Would those reasons have anything to do with the credibility problems I mentioned earlier? They almost put me off posting here, but I settled on posting my opinions whilst carefully guarding my anonymity. You have no idea how many times I've had to edit my posts before hitting "submit", to delete personal information that might have given away my true identity (I normally only ever post on forums using my real name).

The front page does not do this forum the credit it deserves. There are a high number of passionate and intelligent members on here.

Do you post on other forums still Kris? and what sites do you go on?

[Dr. No]

The public can go either way for the next one. Users at casino website are waiting for the next one before call him bond
Craig is the only bond I can remember not accepted on his first movie (wasn't around for Lazenbys fall from grace ). Plenty of people don't think Craig was Bond in Cr and they don't "hate" him. Some love him and CR but don't think it was a Bond movie.
"Fill in name here" not bond is every actors worst nightmare, probably helped rally the elite to defend Craig. They over killed the hype and best Bond title it may come back to bit them in 08. the press still loves to find things to dig at craig with, parking, behavior at the baftas. Doesn't help that Craig is a lousy spokes man left on his own.

[Kristatos]

Do you post on other forums still Kris? and what sites do you go on?

Don't post much on other Bond forums these days. As I've said before, I used to post on alt.fan.james-bond, but got sick of all the trolls (funnily enough, the anti-Craig trolls were the worst. With friends like those...).