Simon Cowell doesn't judge stripping

[ariesallover]

Stripping Is Something Simon Doesn't Judge - TMZ.com - Entertainment News, Celebrity Gossip and Hollywood Rumors

Some people think David Hernandez should be tossed off "Idol" for shaking his man parts at a gay strip club -- but Simon Cowell is much more sympathetic to the plight of a man who wears tight clothing.

Video is at the link.

If this were a female contestant who was a stripper, do you think there would be such outcry over the stripping?

I'm trying to figure how much of this reaction is about legal sex industry work and how much is homophobia. I thought strippers were so mainstream as to be tame these days. I'm voting for homophobia, as any coverage I've seen focused not on stripping exactly, but on a male performing for a male.

As always, I don't get the outcry. He was working in a legal job that gave flexibility and good money for the hours worked.

[Icepik]

I personally wouldn't care if a male or female contestant was a stripper, BUT, I think had it been a female contestant, there would have been a bigger up-roar.

Think about that Antonella girl from last year; her pictures (which were very tame) were splayed all over the internet and there was such controversy over it. A big deal made of absolutely nothing - and there were people all over North America screaming that she should be disqualified because of them.

Male strippers don't have the bad rap female strippers do. A female stripper is a dirty, skanky slut with no morals and a male stripper is there just to make money.

[McJag]

I dunno if it would be different or not. I do think it beats holding up banks. It was a legal job & pictures of his nude self ar not (as far as I know) for sale on the internet. Who cares if he did it for males ,females or fruitflies. A job is a job-OK-not many men could even get hired for this, but still. Give him a break. I would say the same if it was female.

[ByRDi]

I personally wouldn't care if a male or female contestant was a stripper, BUT, I think had it been a female contestant, there would have been a bigger up-roar.

Think about that Antonella girl from last year; her pictures (which were very tame) were splayed all over the internet and there was such controversy over it. A big deal made of absolutely nothing - and there were people all over North America screaming that she should be disqualified because of them.

Male strippers don't have the bad rap female strippers do. A female stripper is a dirty, skanky slut with no morals and a male stripper is there just to make money.

Icepik, thank you for writing my thoughts for me, it saved me some time. I agree completely, although when I heard the "news", my first thought was "oh my, the little girls and old ladies won't like this".

[sweetness]

If this were a female contestant who was a stripper, do you think there would be such outcry over the stripping?

I'm trying to figure how much of this reaction is about legal sex industry work and how much is homophobia. I thought strippers were so mainstream as to be tame these days. I'm voting for homophobia, as any coverage I've seen focused not on stripping exactly, but on a male performing for a male.

If I'm not mistaken Nikki McKibbon (from the first season) was a stripper and nobody really said anything.

I suppose they're only making an issue of David's stripping because he's gay.

[ariesallover]

I do think it beats holding up banks.

Yes lol. All humor aside, I hate the idea that people are reacting as if something criminal happened.

It was a legal job & pictures of his nude self ar not (as far as I know) for sale on the internet.

Soon enough, they likely will be, and for me, that wouldn't change a thing. He's selling his image (and singing) on Idol for the show itself and future gigs; he was selling his image (and dancing) as a stripper. Part of the hypocrisy that annoys me is that entertainers are selling their sexuality (via image and appearance, usually) across a wide range of employment options.

Who cares if he did it for males ,females or fruitflies. A job is a job-OK-not many men could even get hired for this, but still. Give him a break. I would say the same if it was female.

Pretty much my view too.

If I'm not mistaken Nikki McKibbon (from the first season) was a stripper and nobody really said anything.

I suppose they're only making an issue of David's stripping because he's gay.

Ya know I figured this *had* to have happened before. There are just too many people whose scheduling and financial needs at some point in life are met by some aspect of the sex industry.

This story about Nikki fits my hypothesis: female strippers in a (largely) hetero club setting are not shocking anymore, at least not in the way that this male performer would be because of homophobia.

I personally wouldn't care if a male or female contestant was a stripper, BUT, I think had it been a female contestant, there would have been a bigger up-roar.

What you're saying makes sense, though I hadn't considered it from angle until you mentioned it. In a way, if people enforce the "madonna/whore" binary against a female contestant and then demonize her, then yes, a female contestant with a stripper past is going to fare worse than a male.

Think about that Antonella girl from last year; her pictures (which were very tame) were splayed all over the internet and there was such controversy over it. A big deal made of absolutely nothing - and there were people all over North America screaming that she should be disqualified because of them.

I didn't know the name or details, but I recalled something about porno pics in some contestant's past. It galls me that people would want her disqualified. It's not like the Miss America pageant that explicitly lets contestants know they are supposed to be squeaky clean cartoons (wasn't there something about one pageant contestant who had an abortion in her past and that was a big deal re: rules about sex and sexuality?).

If her involvement in porn boiled down to economics, I wonder why people would be opposed to her seeking a legal means of getting employment that paid a high fee, likely a three-figure amount per hour. It's not like she had a law license to command that kind of fee for hours worked.

Male strippers don't have the bad rap female strippers do. A female stripper is a dirty, skanky slut with no morals and a male stripper is there just to make money.

And it's the double-standard all the way around: a guy goes to a strip club without major social repercussions, but the woman on the other end of that transaction could lose a job in the future.

[sweetness]

Remember when they kicked off that heavy set black girl when they found out about her topless pics?
It was a shame too because she was really talented. Can't remember her name.

Seems like she went on to do something on Broadway.

[ariesallover]

Remember when they kicked off that heavy set black girl when they found out about her topless pics? It was a shame too because she was really talented. Can't remember her name.

Seems like she went on to do something on Broadway.

OMG. Someone really was kicked off for this kind of reason?

Just researched it:
The Smoking Gun: Archive

Evan Marriott's brief career as an underwear model wasn't a problem. And "Joe Millionaire" contestant Sarah Kozer's starring role in dozens of bondage and fetish films also was of no concern to Fox Television. But the network has bounced an "American Idol" contestant because the woman once posed nude for an Internet porn site.


Franchelle "Frenchie" Davis, the 23-year-old singer canned by Fox, was a fan favorite and had been tabbed last week by Entertainment Weekly as one of the program's leading six contenders. According to a TSG source, Davis posed topless (and appeared to be masturbating) on "Daddy's Little Girls," a web site where "the girls have all grown up...and the boys have come to play." However, at the time she posed for these photos, Davis--who used the alias HoneyBrown--was over 18. The Los Angeles native has claimed that she took the topless gig to earn money so that she could re-enroll in Howard University, where she is a theater major. In a recent interview, when asked about the proudest moment of her life, Davis said, "Other than getting back in school after not having the money and not being there for a year," American Idol "has been the proudest moment 'cause I worked so hard."

[msdeb]

i absolutely LOVED Frenchy. she was without a doubt the best contestant that season.

[sweetness]

I thought she was great too! Beautiful voice and outstanding personality.

A lot of folks felt that she was singled out simply because she was overweight.

How dare someone who's bigger than a size 6 pose nude!

[Life]

American Idol is bias especially in the way it treated Frenchie.