America's Got Talent

You sit at home watching the show calmly while the judges are screaming, hiding their eyes and making ridiculous comments. Then the audience gives a standing ovation to just about everything. Standing ovations are supposed to be for something really special. Done this often it loses its meaning and significance. Another show with too much hype.

I personally don't find the danger acts appealing. I always have to mute or look away from them. The sob stories are over the top. There is an occasional good act, but it's not worth sitting through a whole episode for. The straw that broke the camels back for me is the fact that they allow comedians from other countries come and do nothing more on stage than insult Americans. Now, I'm no stuck in the mud, I find many of the comedic acts mocking past presidents hilarious. But there are some other acts that are straight up bigotry and not even comedy anymore. If an American openly insulted a country's citizens in another country the same way they had some so on this stage, there would rightfully be backlash. So I don't appreciate double standard here. It's not comedy. It's bigotry. There's a difference between a joke, and xenophobic sentiments disguised as jokes. I have no problem with acts from other countries on the show, but the ones that come onstage openly insulting Americans do not deserve the screen time. I would not accept an American doing that on another country's show, and expect the same respect in return.

Based on the fact that "American Idol" judge (and media mogul) Simon Cowell was behind this show, I watched its premiere episode. I was absolutely flabbergasted by the unprofessional behaviour of one of its judges, Piers Morgan. He kept pressing other judges' elimination buzzers for them, and was so quick to judge that he instantly misjudged a ventriloquist and had to change his vote to avoid looking foolish; the ventriloquist turned out to be terrific. On "American Idol", you may agree or disagree with the judges, but it's clear that they bring their own professional standards with them to the judging process, and apply them consistently. On "America's Got Talent", David Hasselhoff clearly withholds his vote (he's third in the rotation) for a time when an act is bombing,, so as to prolong whatever unintentional comedy is going on. Piers Morgan has Simon Cowell's flamboyantly sharp tongue without having established any credibility with audiences (I mean, who IS this guy, anyway?), and his reaching for other judges' buzzers is the most shameless exhibition of ego I've ever witnessed on entertainment television. Oddly enough, it's Brandy who reveals the chops, the consistency, and the empathy to make a good judge, though she's the youngest of the three. Regis Philbin emcees, and why NBC is paying that kind of money for a job that a lot of lesser lights could do just as well is beyond me; Philbin's presence adds nothing to the show's entertainment value.

The talent is fine- at least the good acts are- and the idea is fine. But the execution is awful, with Piers Morgan's antics so off-putting I'm not sure if I'll watch again. If NBC wants this show to last, I suggest they get Morgan under control, and impose time standards during auditions, requiring judges to give every contestant some guaranteed minimum of time, to avoid another misfire such as the one that occurred with the ventriloquist. The main thing is to get the judges looking more impartial and professional; once the voting and elimination processes begin, the home audience is not going to take kindly to things that appear to skew a contestant's chances.

In the past there were some good acts but what annoys me is the judges praising some of the most boring contestants and their acts and an audience that would give a standing ovation if somebody tossed road kill on to the stage. The audience is always way too over the top.

Should be titled "America Is Running Out of Talent". Average singers, card tricks or groups of kids jumping and stomping in unison is usually all there is. Usually pretty tedious, unless you take a drink every time a judge uses the word "amazing".