Don’t blame teen girls for the lack of female finalists on ‘American Idol’

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Ever since the earliest days of pop music, boy-crazy young women have been blamed for pop’s occasional loss of reason, from teenyboppers pining for Sinatra to Bieber Fever. Now that ‘Idol’ has eliminated all but two female contestants, blame is being pinned on women swooning over anyone with testosterone.

Female voters do play a big role in the ‘Idol’ outcome, but as Ann Powers argues, there’s no reason to believe they base their musical choices solely on their libidos. Women have made Taylor Swift and Nicki Minaj hits; they care as much about Lady Gaga as the guys do.

The real problem with ‘Idol’ is that ‘its own musical framework is sadly irrelevant when it comes to what female pop stars do in the 21st century,’ Powers writes.

Can a women ever win ‘Idol’ again? And how could the show fix this problem? Read more on ‘Idol’’s female trouble here.

Photo (left): Haley Reinhart. She and Lauren Alaina are the last two women standing in ‘Idol.’ Credit: Michael Becker / Associated Press

Photo (right): Lauren Alaina. Credit: Ray Mickshaw / Fox / Associated Press

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