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Reuters
Bristol Palin performs during Monday's semifinals of "Dancing With the Stars" on ABC. She and partner Mark Ballas qualified for next Monday's final dance-off against Kyle Massey, Jennifer Grey and their partners.
Does Bristol Palin, the daughter of that politically powerful hockey mom from Alaska, have the best moves on "Dancing with the Stars"? Some critics say she's definitely improved as the season has progressed. But the judges consistently give her among the lowest marks -- meaning it's the people, the voters, who have kept her around for Monday night's finale.
And these voters, according to theories swirling on the Internet, appear to be politically motivated. Having Palin tear up the dance floor on national TV is considered a boost for the conservative Tea Party movement. To keep the votes coming in, the party is using social media effectively to rally the base behind the young Palin mom.
The campaign apparently includes exploitation of a loophole in ABC's e-mail voting feature. The loophole is explained as a technicality in the system that allows voters to register an infinite number of email addresses and vote, vote, vote. The e-mail addresses are never validated, such as what happens when you sign up for a Facebook or PayPal account.
"Lord have mercy, I voted for 3 hours online! I got 300 in," one Palin fan wrote in a comment on the HillBuzz blog, which is leading the charge on Bristol Palin's behalf.
ABC tries to safeguard against such abuse. "Computers must allow cookies, have Javascript enabled and have the latest version of Flash installed," the company explains on its Web site. The implication is that cookies are used to determine whether the computer user has already voted. An integrity assessment is conducted against each online vote, including security measures that are meant to catch and remove fraudulent voting.
The New York Daily News quoted the show's executive producer, Conrad Green, as saying that multiple e-mailed votes would be wiped out if they came from the same IP address -- though he declined to spell out exactly how the system matches up e-mails with those numerical Internet routing codes.
Even all of those safeguards may not be enough. The pro-Palin groundswell is reportedly leading ABC to consider changing its voting system to give more weight to the judges' assessment -- and less weight to the voice of the people.
Open voting process
Thad Hall is an associate professor of computer science at the University of Utah and a research affiliate with the Caltech/MIT Voting Technology Project. He told me that the voting systems on reality-TV shows such as "Dancing With the Stars" and "American Idol" are designed to gauge popular support for the various contestants, and "they do that by creating a very open process." In other words, this isn't supposed to be a "one person, one vote" election.
Stopping voter fraud is likely a low priority, Hall said. They could put in controls to more stictly authenticate voters such as requiring viewers to register through their cable box and limit households to a set number of votes. But at the end of the day, "the show is interested in one thing: they are interested in ratings," he said.
Measures to more strictly police the voting would only be put in place if the controversy about the fairness of the system drove viewers away. As long as the controversy boosts ratings, it's "a good thing."
Elections that matter
As important as Bristol Palin may be for keeping the Tea Party in the public eye, the fairness of the voting process on "Dancing With the Stars" pales in comparison with an election that actually has political consequences. Consider, for example, the race for the White House in 2012, in which Bristol's mom could be a contender.
In a real-world online election, steps can be taken to cut down on voter fraud, Hall said. The key is an authentication process that separates the act of registering to vote from the act of voting. Estonia, for example, has successfully held nationwide online voting, under conditions that independent security audits have shown to be effective and reliable. Estonia's rigorous authentication process makes it difficult for an individual to vote more than once.
Hall said nationwide online voting is unlikely to ever take hold in the U.S., but efforts are under way to make it an option for difficult-to-reach populations such as overseas military personnel. While there's "always a possibility of people doing bad things" with such a system, he said, election officials "can make it really hard to do bad things."
What do you think? Will online voting ever be secure and fair enough to reliably choose winners of reality shows and the White House? Feel free to weigh in with your comments below.
More on the Palins and reality-TV voting:
- Palin girls' hateful words common on Facebook
- Upset by Bristol's 'Dancing' luck, man shoots TV
- Palin's success raises tempers, boosts ratings
- Bristol says 'haters' are trying to 'destroy' her
- Poll: Sarah Palin most polarizing of 2012 crowd
John Roach is a contributing writer for msnbc.com. Connect with the Cosmic Log community by hitting the "like" button on the Cosmic Log Facebook page or following msnbc.com's science editor, Alan Boyle, on http://twitter.com/b0yle.
Leave a Comment:
msnbc, you are absolutely ridiculous. How long has viewer voting been around over the last decade? Well thats also how long fans vote excessively. pipe down! I know a conservative is doing well and after the dems lost control of washington this is all you have left to attack, but realize its just a tv show.
When conservatives post instructions on how to cheat so that "their" people win, even a pointless game like this, with the goal being to make a point to "socialists" and "libtards," I don't think it's going too far to call them out on it. "Just a tv show" or not, cheating is cheating.
No reason to get upset. This article is mainly informational. I was wondering how the voting was done for this show. I thought it was only by phone. I never realized their was online voting and their was a flaw in it. Doesn't matter to me...too much.
I only think it's kind of unfair that someone who is consistently at the top of their game gets voted off while someone always with low scores continues soley becuase viewers like her mother. Oh well.
How proud people must be ....admiting to being a cheater. Why cheat over something so petty (in the grand scheme of things)? How accomplished can you feel knowing you 'won' because others cheated? Doesn't that diminish the victory? Won't that ruin the competition for others?
How unfair to the other contestants and their supporters, way to be role models huh....as Eddie & Chavo Guerraro (WWE) used to proclaim Cheat to win, will that be the 2012 slogan?
It will be interesting to see the fallout from this. I think that if Bristol wins the whole shebang then it will be a blow to the credibility of the show. The producers might have a harder time getting new contestants if they think that the system is rigged, and the viewers might start changing the channel if they think their votes don't count.
When the Palins and their supporters cheat with voting at something as insignificant as this show, can you just imagine how corrupt they'd be if placed in a high political position??? Alaska was smart enough to finally see through Palin's ignorance, corruption, and manipulations to turn their backs on her advice and support of Joe Miller for the Senate position, which by the way he to a write in candidate. The State of Alaska had a law suit filed against Palin and threatened with more to come long before the last McCain/Palin election was over. This just goes to show exactly what they thought of her leadership skills (actually the lack of) and why she choose to run from the Governor's office. The woman was delinquent and suspiciously dishonest in her filing State taxes, too, if you can believe what their media in that State reported. How long will it take the naive U.S. voters to realize that this woman, her family, or the wacky supporters will stop at nothing with corruption and cheating to achieve their goals?? Is that same kind of intelligence and lack of integrity what we need In D.C. or elsewhere ?? It seems to me there is already enough of that self-serving behavior in D.C. and Wall Street, who take from the worker's pockets to place into their deep pockets of greed. What you have seen on this show is just a small example of what may come in the future with potentially poor voting choices. That is exactly what happened during the 8 years of Bush and Chaney running our Country down the drain economically. "The transfer of our money to the wealthy" through "Bailouts", enormous bonuses, etc. Now the Republicans think the wealthy should be granted the permanent Bush Tax Cuts, while at the same time seriously cutting Social Security, Medicare (hoping to eliminate both first, and if not, then go for big cuts), and eliminating any kind of an affordable Health Care Reform. Wake up America!!! Do you get the picture of what is developing? Because you are just seeing a small example of this with the show, who is more interested in the ratings than with an honest outcome. A show that is willing to put dishonest money into their already deep pockets and very strong media influence.
Don't watch the program, but I was wondering why the "Haters" were so outraged by her progress in the competition. Looks like their outrage might be acceptable. I always thought these were phone-in votes; shows how much I watch TV.
Since the Republicans have two years to fix America or get voted out, you'd think they would have better things to do than organize voting efforts for a no talent little nothing.
Must everything come down to policits???? It takes a lot of energy to be chronically po'd about a tv program and attempt to relate it to the pending downfall of the U. S. economy...step slowly away from the computer and turn off the t.v............then....get a life if possible. lollollollol.................
Cameron Ford: YOU LOST GET OVER IT!!! HA HA HA
Mail her the prize 3rd class, and have a 10 second, no, 5 second announcement of her win on the first show of the next season.
Better yet, have all the other contestants resign in protest, cancell the final show and then mail her the prize.
Independent thinker and others who have lumped all republicans with the mindless fodder who watch this drivel:
The fact that average Joe-schmo Americans are taking the time to vote multiple times for a candidate in NO way equates to fraud or dishonesty by the politicians in office. It only shows that some Joe-schmo Americans (apparently a majority) are mad enough at democrats to take out their anger and dissatisfaction in even minute, petty ways, such as a lackluster television show. There is absolutely no evidence to suggest that republicans somehow banded together to vote on this show. there was no caucus of vote-stuffing held to determine a strategy to get Bristol Palin more votes, no--all this article showed was that there was a flaw in the net-voting system that some people were able to take advantage of. And you know what? I bet the producers of the show not only knew about the glitch, but are complicit in keeping it available because retaining Bristol Palin on the show gets people motivated to watch it--either in hopes she fails or hope that she wins, in either case the "house" wins and they get more ratings. I'll bet the producers themselves were among those people voting numerous times. She's a cash cow and they're not going to put her out to slaughter until they've milked her for all she's worth. In brief, its not like the republicans on capitol hill were rallying their constituents to vote for Bristol, it was just a bunch of TV addicted Americans with too much time on their hands and a greedy pool of TV producers who are rolling in the ratings spike.
So please, don't make yourself into a jack@ss, even if your political mascot literally is one. It's embarrassing.
If only the concern of "vote hacking" for the 2000 Election was one trillionth as important as the "vote hacking" on "Dancing" is.
We are a sad and nihilistic country.
Well, if a person with any integrity finds out that the voting system in a competition s/he entered was compromised in his/her favor, that person would exercise that integrity and have the voting adjusted to eliminate the illicit votes. And WHY is this show so popular?
It is funny how this has only now become a problem. When other contestants in previous seasons were screwed, it was not a problem, but now it is...I wonder why.
These voting systems are always manipulated by individuals. It is not a right-wing conspiracy. It is probably more people enjoying watching the liberals get their panties in a bunch.
Morality is morality. Cheating is cheating. It's interesting how Conservatives are always telling us they can't compromise on their principles. It would seem it's only a compromise if they have to play by the rules. All of a sudden, we need to get some perspective because it's just a TV show.
It has never been this outrageous before, that's why...and in the past someone who should have gone home on the first round has NEVER gotten to the finals...cheating is cheating...and how scary to think if someone would cheat over a stupid show...what are they capable of in something important!! I'm sorry, yes she isn't as bad as when she first started on the show...but in NO way can even Bristol think she deserves to be this far.
Someone with integrity would step down, heck even Jerry Springer stated every week... it's ok to send me home.. i've had fun but don't deserve to continue...lets see if at least 1 Palin has the integrity to do that... doubtful.
All I know is if it's true the station only cares about ratings... they won't be worried next year because they won't have any ratings... hope they're reading all the feedback, i know I won't be watching...and i'm only one in thousands of thousands stating the same thing... and it will probly have to put their own crew on as dancers because if I was a celebrity, i'd say forget it!!
Maybe they should just make it for entertainment...no judging, no voting...just come on and dance and let us either say bravo to their skills or lol our butts off.. i'd watch that!
As already stated . . . . it's a TV show, why start slinging mud? It's entertainment, maybe the voting is just part of all that entertainment! The people voting learned it from someone . . . . . take on something worth your energy.
It's really funny to see what you all have to say about a strong support vote by the fans. They have spoken, and that is not cheating just because you don't like the outcome.
You guys are right: cheating is cheating. I hope that you will ALL be as apopletic when the unions "mildly suggest" that voting Dem will save their jobs. Or when a local voting group registers dead people to vote.
Bristol is not a "star" (teen activist?). Come on - she never qualified at the beginning. Since when does being an unwed mother qualify her as being a star. The name of the program is Dancing With The Stars. I won't go into the fact that she can't dance!! How have the three judges rated her??? In case you don't know - at the bottom on a consistent basis.
Palins Daughter Looks like A Porcine Pig ... she looks like she's sporting the TRIG gene ...
Actually I think this explains how a so so dancer can survive while very good dancers go home and make a joke out of this show and not much else. What I like about this is it shows just how strange politics and republicans have gotten that they think they benefit from booting the good dancers to have someone with two left feet win. I think the end result is a potential stunning and embarrassing joke.
Therefore I like it.
Independant stinker - nice stinkin' thinkin'!! And you are better?? LOL!!!
LOL at the hacks posting in this thread, dancing with the stars is so diabolical yet tax cheat Charlie Rangel is walking around STILL in office, if any regular American did what he did we would be fined and placed in jail. Maxine Waters is next!
luanne - jerry springer? lmao!
You have a point David but unfortunately we also have serial killers and we have a bad dancer. All three are similar:
Rangel killed honesty
Serial killers killed people
Bristol killed dancing.
All three should be sentenced by the degree of their crimes. Rangel should be sentenced to hold no office, serial killers should be sentenced to life in prison, Bristol should be sentenced back to go back to the office she works in.
;-)
BOOOhoo hooo whaa WHAA WHaa boo boo hoo ho hooo hooooo Whaa whaa boo hoo hooo
If Bristol had an ounce of integrity in her body...she would demand a recount...to clear this cloud surrounding her continued participation in the show.
gmci
Well I guess you did not read the article how you can manipulate votes via the internet (not just phone in votes.) That is the real issue here. I applaud Bristol for her hard work and progress...but get real...this should be a dancing show...and not just a polularity contest to try to show tea paty might.
If you think she is the strongest dancer in the competition then of course vote for her... I contend that she is not. I am not a fan of Brandy, but good lord, she dances rings around Bristol.
The show will become a laughing stock should Bristol win. I do not blame Bristol. I blame the mis-guided public.
Welcome to the land of mediocrity, where we celebrate the inept, reward the incompetent, and demean the talented, and skilled. Who are the real Fascists? Welcome to the Tea Party, Republican America.
Wow... is anyone else embarrassed with all the pettiness that prevails in our country? How little nothings are made into big somethings are beyond belief. There are no ethics at the top so it's no wonder that projection pervades all manner of things.
"Lord have mercy, I voted for 3 hours online! I got 300 in," one Palin fan wrote in a comment on the HillBuzz blog, which is leading the charge on Bristol Palin's behalf. -- Is it possible that a so called, "Palin Hater" blogged this?
I propose the new reality, which is no show at all, "Poop Culture." @!$%# gets made up and spun every which way; The biggest piles are not on TV folks.
Newsflash: not everything is political or should be made so... If you find this to be a difficult task, go suck on an Ex-Lax.
I, for one, voted for Bristol Palin just because I wanted to see what she would do and how she would be/act - the sheer entertainment value. I found her intriguing and more interesting to watch than most the others (watching her deal with the pressure/with the numnuts that had to make it political). My votes were not for Bristol to win; they were to keep her in. Apparently I am the only person out there that would vote for that reason. I did not realize I was inadvertently voting for the future Presidency.
I hope Jennifer Gray wins, and that is who I will vote for Monday night when I place my vote for who should win.
What seems odd here is that some are suggesting that only conservatives are * hacking * the vote. I'm guessing Palin derangement syndrome folks can hack back against her so I'm not buying any of this dribble. At least it gives the conspiracy freaks something to lather upon for the next century or two.
"Computers must allow cookies, have Javascript enabled and have the latest version of Flash installed,"
So 'cheating' is very difficult and extra votes are removed.
I guess this is just another anti-Palin article from msnbc.
Perhaps the judges are also anti-Palin in their evaluations.
You betcha!
denise - how right you are, I am spending my time telling you how lame and of no consequence your itty-bitty mind is by posting such dribble!
greg4422 - even more dribble.
Wipe off your chins.
camereon ford/byron raum - and you are implying "ALL" conservatives? How does it feel knowing that the democrat rangel is also a cheater. I suppose that if I asked you liberals if you have stopped beating your wife, significant others or kids yet you would all reply "Yes" I have.
Nonsense it happens on Newsvine and every other voting forum out there. These people are just plain stupid because they have exposed what they do in the forums to post negatives against the other party by showing you how they do it over a nonsense show. There is no way Bristol Palin ever should have made it through the second round of this unless they cheated and last week Brandy beat the hell out of her.
1st of all it is a scam that Bristol is on the show in the 1st place, unless giving birth to a bastard child against your will because you mother who is incapable of governing a state for 1/2 term and failed complete any actual political achievement forced you to, makes you a star. 2nd she is fat and ugly, 3rd she can't dance. Everything about anyone with the last name of Palin is a hoax.
Here is how they do it here on Newsvine vote with one login. Delete the cookie log back in vote again as many times as you like try it and you will see thats why all Newsvine polls are bs.
N O need to upset, she deserves it. She came in with 0 experiences and she worked hard. I think that is this dancing all about, to see a dancer grows. All other people over the time have show experience, they know how to act and how express their feelings and expression, but not with her, she is one of us, who is not in show business. She 100% deserves it. I will vote for her again.
I would tend to agree Shawn however there are a few things I'd like to address in later comments. There is a difference between cheating and using the system as it's set up to ones advantage. If one finds a loophole they will use it it's human nature and I'd say 99% of the people out there will use that loophole. Really though it's no different from having say a house phone and a cell phone using both to vote with or say multipule lines into the house. For people to say this is a political stunt is really lame or if one prefers it's really stupid.
Let me see if I got this right. She is the only one that can be voted for this way? She is probably the ONLY TRUE amateur on this show since Grey should be considered as a professional being an actor and coming from a family of pro dancers and taking dance lessons from a PRO and being PAID to dance. But then if something is going according to the way MSNBC thinks it should be going, then they print dome story that yells foul. But in reality, WHO really cares who wins these bogus BS shows anyway?
Most that write for MSNBC are pitiful at best. And those that can do no better than to try to belittle some young girl are even WORSE!!!!
@Roy Wilson 336103
flash and java script are not security measures. Cookies to track who voted can be deleted as easily as going to your browser...clicking tools...internet options....delete cookies....delete, less than 30 seconds and I'm not even a hacker....lol
You are sick!
I agree with Shawn, but somehow I am being blocked from voting for his comment
The sick comment was suppose to be a reply to Ollie for what he call the baby. so uncalled for!
I can't believe people are blaming Republicans for Bristol Palin's success. Talk about grasping at straws.
Bristol Palin is just as much of a star as Paris Hilton or Nicole Ritchie. Would you all be whining as much if they were on the show?
@Brandon - Bush won. Move on. Personally I shudder at the thought of Al Gore being at the helm on 9/11.
One last comment. I hate this Newsvine format. It's cumbersome and takes too long to load. Why do some vines appear in different formats? To TPTB, if this is a test to see which one users like better, nix this one.
I thought this show was called "Dancing with the Stars". What is the source of Bristol's stardom? I guess it's when she became another unwed mother.
Oh....MY Dears....shame on you.
Mr. O won his post, gained through voter fraud and lies. And you are filled with piss and vinegar over a young ladies win on a harmless tv show?! Don't you think that perhaps, any suggested cheating is a subtle hint, maybe?
Good Heavens. "Dancing With the Stars" is a television show, and not a national debate.
And if cheating is possible on a tv program, then that applies to all contestants, and not Miss Bristol Palen alone. Right?
What is truly at risk here is the honor behind the American voting system. It is an Honor system, but the Honor went missing that sad November day in 2008. I was myself witness to two attempted frauds at my polling place. They had voted by mail and then, believed they could go undetected at the polling place for a second (third, or more?) time. That was a simple post-2008 local election, but we know what's up now, and it won't happen again. That loophole has been closed, for the most part. One Man = one vote.
I would like to point out something to the foul mouth, name calling libs.
The act of "teabagging" requires 2 participants. The "teabagger" and the "teabagee".
How did that mouthful of tea taste on the morning of November 3rd?
@Edna435
People wouldn't be " blaming Republicans for Bristol Palin's success" if there wasn't a tea bagger web site taking credit for hacking DWTS voting system and stuffing the ballot box for Bristol...read the article.
TheHillbillybuzz blog
@TJC-123
The tea party are the ones who named themselves tea baggers....not our fault they were unaware what the word to tea bag meant.
Gee, I thought the Tea Party named themselves The Tea Party.
Win fair and square.....then you gain an ounce of credibility! Control of Washington? You are the reason that medicinal marijuana should be illegal!
This is exactly why only the fringe members of our community ever ADMIT to being a teabagger!
I read the article and it's a joke. Why is it even an article? It's pretty sad that people are attacking Bristol because of her mother. She's working very hard to get better and I commend her for that. I personally don't watch the show but I've read some of the judges comments and they feel she has improved quite a bit.
People have been getting in hundreds and thousands of votes on these shows since the beginning. And they weren't voting for a politician's child either.
@ TJC-123
NO TEABAGGER gain in my state......but I live in the part of the country where folks are educated! Not a trailer in sight!
Haha....
The definition of a TEABAGGER....a sore loser willing to lie, cheat and steal for ANYTHING even a freaking dance competition.
They should ALL be lined up........(and you know the rest)!!!!
But THIS is what many of you are allowing to gain some semblance of credibility.
I blame YOU ALL! U know WHO u are!
@diva
It's has nothing to gains. If we are teabaggers then you must be teabagees.
What's that? Sorry, can't make out what you're saying. Please remove those "bags" from your mouth.
How stupid are you people? Don't you get that the TEA PARTY PEOPLE ARE NOT A FRINGE GROUP...YOU ARE! They are undeniably the majority of Americans. The Tea Partiers may have voted Republican "this time" to stop the insanity of the far left Democrats in office like you guys....and they did! Take a look at that political map of take-overs in the election....Quit being "Baghdad Bob"! The majority of Americans identify with Bristol and with Sarah Palin and hear you calling them "stupid" and vulgar names and that is just like you calling them names...are you that delusionally egotistical that you don't get it?! There are actually Harvard and Yale graduates that vote for Bristol Palin and will vote for her Mother if she runs for President. No Duh!
Tea Partiers are the majority of Americans. The NYT survey done says the average Tea Party person is 61 and has a higher education level than those that rally for the Democratic causes. Those highly educated people do research and study..and actually READ THE BILLS even if Pelosi doesn't. They get it. They are smart.
Just because this one person found some loophote way of voting and voted 300 times in 3 hours..though I personally think that person lied, it doesn't mean that others on the website voted more than the fair way of doing it. Once again because that one person is not the majority of all the people in America and Tea Partiers (hence the election) are a cross section of the majority of Americans.
BRISTOL AND SARAH PALIN ARE 'WE THE PEOPLE' ....the ruling majority of Americans...Keep calling us stupid and keep losing to us! Most of you have a 2000 Bush/Gore hang-over...get over it!
@parker Rules
It was more than one person, its an entire blog of people dedicated to pushing this hack and taking credit for forcing her win.... read the article..then visit the blog for yourself and read the comments.
http://hillbuzz.org/2010/11/15/bristol-palin-dancing-with-the-stars-watch-thread-4/#comment-315472
Palin's cerebral palsy-like dance was uninspiring (from the clips that I have seen).
Does it bother anyone else that stories like this get thousands of comments, but meaningful seeds are basically ignored?
America has never been known for its "intellect."
HOW RIDICULOUS THIS ACCUSATION IS? Think LOGIC! Only voters for Bristol (all of them) were smart enough to find some loophole and only voters for Bristol (all of them) have 3 hours to spend creating email accounts to vote for Bristol. Could it be possible that some teenager that watches Disney and Kyle could possibly have found the time to stay on the computer to do vote for him instead or even one voter for Jennifer was maybe smart enough to figure out that loophole and vote for her like that. To say that just one contestant had an avid fan that found a way around this when it was reported a couple of weeks ago and no other voter for any other contestant read the article and found that same loophole and began voting avidly for their particular candidate. Petty and Silly!...Just sorry losers!
Besides thinking logically how many people on one Tea Party website (Tea Partiers are loads of websites and no certain one "the" one that all tea party people go to) have the 3 hours to spend voting for Bristol. Most assuredly there were very few people that spent the time to figure out how to do it and then have the time to actually sit at a computer and vote for 3 hours. ....and what's to say other contestant fans didn't do the same for their favorite.
The fact is that "if" only Tea Party people are voting for Bristol then it is a representative of the majority of Americans watching DWTS. It takes a majority of votes to win an election and then Tea Party people have proven that they are the majority. So if the majority of Americans are Tea Partiers and they are voting for Bristol then Bristol is their choice. Call them dishonest, stupid, can't dance, fat, hicks, trailer trash, and the Palins keep winning. You snicker and sneer, talk down to mid-America and they will find a way to knock you off your self-appointed high horse...you pseudo-intellectual snobs!
Very well said Parker. You are a great example of a true Tea Partier.
Parker for President in 2012
Ain't that something even with a dancing show politicians are corrupt
I'm through with this show and I love dancing. Disney has gone too far this time and has proven that they will do anything for ratings. Totally disgusting. They really need to bring Brandi back and apologize.
It's ABC and not Disney. Brandy's dancing was almost perfect but I didn't know a lot of people that were tuning in to watch her. Lots of people did not like her personality, never watched her show, and would never buy her music so why would they spend time voting for her?
I have a network of about 300 friends all over America that have no stated political leaning and they have no idea what political party I favor on that website. I had a thread and polls about DWTS and the poll for Voted For went almost equally to Jennifer and Kyle with very little difference in score and Bristol was slightly less. Brandy barely had any votes. Best dancer went to Jennifer. Most Entertaining went to Kyle. Liked Best went to Bristol. Brandy rated on the bottom of each category.
You get to see the people you keep hearing about on the news and see their personalities and some you liked before you begin to dislike when seeing them on there. I was voting for Michael Bolton because I always liked him but quit voting for him when I saw his personality and didn't like him. I loved seeing Mama Brady until she did that vulgar dance. I had never seen The Situation on Jersey Shores and loved his personality. I absolutely love Kyle and would tune in even if it was just him on there. I loved Jennifer Gray but grew tired of her personality but loved every performance.
I love Bristol Palin and feel like I have to have her back with all the cyberbullying she undeservedly gets slammed with all over the internet.
So Brandy didn't lose because of any manipulation by any group of people that could not have discovered themselves how to manipulate the voting process also and voted for her. She didn't win because people just liked her less than the others. Her dancing must have given her lots of votes and her fans must be great in number because she did make it to the finals didn't she?
Give me a break! Why can't people just leave politics and political correctness out of things so the rest of us can enjoy life again!!!!!!!!!!!!! Not EVERYTHING is about politics!!!
It is not if but when. It is the way of the future !!.
I may not be all-knowing, but there are certain things I cannot ignore.
Yes, it is true. If Bristol Palin did not dance as well as the other three, she should have been sent home. And yet, you must realize that by a competition with viewer voting, that the results are bound to be filled with bias for a variety of things that don't have anything to do with their talent. This showed a prominent example with a certain group (not all) within conservative Republicans voting due to their political belief's or agendas.
However, it is a far cry from the exaggerations that I have read. People have voted for their favorite not because of who their mom is or what party they are in but for more simplistic terms like their personality, clothing, behavior, or reputation.
To go even further, the amount of people who hack in order to repeatedly vote are not as outstanding as anti-Palin supporters would want to believe. Would an average American truly waste 3 hours on a computer in order to put the highest possible amount of votes in (Palin or otherwise)? Of course not. It would be ridiculous to assume so. What is present in that blog of extreme voter hacking for Bristol is exactly that: extreme.
To reiterate: people cheat. Honestly, I can imagine a similar scenario happening for celebrities based off of their sheer acting ability and previous fan base, but I don't believe it would cause anywhere near the controversy that this has. The only reason why this is such a large issue, is because Bristol's support is based, in part, by politics.
To be honest, I don't watch the show. I viewed previous seasons but have not since 2 seasons back. And I don't truly care about who wins or stays. Every single one of the stars has a significant fan base, whether it is politics, acting, clothing, appearance, etc. I would hope that it would be simply for dancing ability, but I have the logic to realize that, as a competition by vote, it is unachievable.
When you start huffing and puffing about a dance show on TV you seriously should take a better look at your life LOL!
I watch the show and I can see where people may have been turned off by Brandi. All she did was cry, thought she was 'all deserving' and her dancing always looked dry and fake almost programmed.
I do not vote on any of these reality shows since it is not that important to me who wins and who does not. I do believe that for the reasons listed above most people tuned Brandi out.
I actually hope Kyle wins, he is hilarious, good natured and is indeed a great entertainer.
2 deleted, stab with a pure political derail, not related to the article at all.
1, others restored, on-topic.
It is pitiful to see people try to get at Sarah through her daughter. Has there been proof that there is cheating or is it just theory like global warming? Look at the voter fraud perpetrated by the left and government subsidised organizations like Acorn! People will throw a fit because Bristol Palin is winning at dancing with the stars, but when elections that really mean something are stolen they remain silent, unless of course they feel George Bush cheated to win. The liberals in this country are so ridiculous, we should buy them all a plane ticket to europe so they can be surrounded with like minded morons.
Linda-2694350 "Give me a break! Why can't people just leave politics and political correctness out of things so the rest of us can enjoy life again!!!!!!!!!!!!! Not EVERYTHING is about politics!!!"
The liberals are still smarting from the 'Shellacking' they took in the elections, so they are going to viciously attack anybody even remotely related to the politicians they hate. 'Liberal used to mean being liberal minded - a 'live and let live' philosophy. Now it's to viciously attack anyone that doesn't agree with them.
Jackie: You mean like when a McDonald's in Ohio recently told their employees if they didn't vote republican they would not get raises or promotions? Like that?
Roy wilson... you wish! Shellacking? What part of: dems still control the senate do YOU not get? I know you guys like to "think" it was because the repugs were wanted back in but if that were the case... how come more were not voted in? hmmmm? It was a message to the dems. The dems need to get tough. They SHOULD have gotten tougher with the repugs in the first two years and did NOT. They lost a few because of that. Put away your faux, limpbagk, beck, and sara p kool aid dear. It's creating a fog for you.
As to Sara and Bristol: I've visited the abc site. People are ticked off at two things: 1) politics were brought into a dance show of all things 2) people didn't like Bristol's DANCING. It had nothing to do with her mother. Quit being lying to yourselves for heaven sakes. I know you 'think' it validates you but really... it just makes you look incredibly silly.
I am conservative and I think Bristol and her mother are incredibly ridiculous. And, as a former dancer, think it is appalling that she is still on that show. A lot of these comments are really ignorant as well on both sides. Stop putting all republicans into one category and all democrats into another. It makes you look just as ignorant as the person you're arguing with.
TJC.... generally, anyone who tries to teabag me finds their bags in the trash can where they belong.
I don't get why this is such a big deal. If so many people on one side of the aisle are concentrating so hard on this, imagine what the other side could sneak through on them politically while DWTS is their end-all be-all focus in life. This applies to both the Left and the Right, so let's see who's smart enough to drop this issue like a hot potato and take advantage of it first.
Just leave it to the PACK of "holier than thou", "do as I say not as I do" phony religious Sarah Palin's and her brood's trolls to find (and use) ways to not only steal political elections, but contests as well - and are VERY PROUD of what they have done.
If DWTS/ABC wanted to REALLY save their reputation, now that they know that there are ways to "rig" their voting system, and was done to boost Bristol Palin, they would actually DISQUALIFY BRISTOL PALIN IMMEDIATELY, and send her packing - just the way it's done if you OR your representatives are found CHEATING on a contest, to give them UNFAIR ADVANTAGE.
Looks like these "holier than thou" "do as I say" phony religious Palin trolls ACTUALLY means "if ya can't beat 'em... cheat 'em.
How PROUD they must be of their reputations.
I say "you can take this brood of hillbillies out of Wasillla AK, but they'll STILL ALWAYS be just dumb-downed griftin' hillbillies.
That's MY opinion!
I can't believe I wasted my time reading this poor excuse for journalism. I thought people in America were stupid for letting shows like this be a big part of their lives, but now people have taken it one step further and started fighting about this asinine possibility that 1) People are voting multiple times just like people have ever since the advent of shows with this kind of voting system and 2) that it could be a big ploy for political motivations.
For one thing...IT IS NOT. For another thing, if it was are any of you really surprised? That is how the American political system works! It is not about who has the best policies or the most experience, it is about who can create the best brand and level of celebrity in their candidate to sell to the ignorant masses. Obama did it and did it better than anyone before him. Bush did the same thing when his campaign strategists marketed him as a President who could keep us safe from terrorism. That is just the way it works. And if you honestly think Sarah Palin will ever be allowed in the White House with the title of President then you must be 10 years old or the most ignorant adult round.
This is just like the uproar about the TSA screenings where instead of accepting a reality people choose to make something out of nothing. Do everyone a favor and instead of concerning yourself with these stupid media talking points go out and do something constructive that will better the lives of you, your family, people in your community, or anyone for that matter. And if you cannot bring yourself to stop letting things like this ruin your day you have much bigger problems than who is winning Dancing with the "Stars".
This story is just plain silly. The majority of people who associate themselves with the tea party are much older people. I can not see my grandmother sitting at the computer to get a child of a political canidate to win a reality show. These people are worried about issues facing America and threats or perceived threats to our rights and big government spending.
I could build a website claiming to be an Obama suppporter and fill it with lies saying that I voted for him 4 times in the last election and taught other people how to vote just as many times. Would you believe it because it says it is produced by a democrat Obama supporter? Any person that has attended any kind of school in the last 10 years will tell you that not all websites are really what they claim to be. You must check sites to make sure that they are authentic.
Sometimes things are not what they seem. I have received e-mails claiming to be from the Republican party to sign a petition to support a particular issue and when you carefully read it is really not by any Republican and is trying to get support for a Democratic cause. I usually do not even look at petitions but someone from work told me she got one appearing to be from one party and really from the other so just out of curiousity I have started reading the petitions and sure enough found that one.
It would also be super easy for a desperate writer to create a site in order to make a story. I do not watch Dancing but it is surprising that Bristol is still dancing. Some writer may have thought this did not make sense and decided to create a story.
I really do not think that people are so crazy to find loop-holes to vote Bristol Palin to stay on the show. Also if people could find loop-holes to vote for her wouldn't the other stars' fans be able to find those same loop-holes. Here is the cold hard truth Bristol is not expected to win. Most of the other stars' fans think or thought they were safe and did not bother to vote because Bristol was not a threat. Her fans knew in order for her to stay on they needed to vote and so they made sure to vote when the others were complacent.
How does she reflect the tea party and I've never seen the show so she is not kept in my eye. And this voting BS has been going on since that show with the singing with the Cowell guy.
I love it, the palins are living rent free in the minds of libs.
So what? If there are no safeguards in the voting, damn straight people are going to vote more than once. There's been other things on TV, even on the net, where you can vote more than once.
If MSNBC was so worried about the integrity of this show then this type of voting should have been addressed long before any tea partier coupe of a contestant. If Shirley Temple came on the show and stunk and yet tons of people voted for her because she was a sentimental favorite, would you have written an expose'? That's right, I didn't think so. You wouldn't have the balls to humiliate an aged and beloved child star.
I think what this story is about is fear about the Tea Party wielding any kind of power and influence.
I agree it is a game show. i too was not aware that you could vote by e-mail.
Cameron I don't understand the problem. If the instructions were posted on how to do this, then even Democrats should have been able to figure it out and vote for other contestants.... Maybe not.......lol
Get over it already. Who really cares who wins this thing it is simply entertainment not an election or life altering event for anyone.
This has been going on for years, both on "Dancing" and "American Idol". Remember when Cloric Leachman stayed on "Dancing" for weeks, when she should have been the first contestant voted off? American Idol each season has this "vote for the worst" online campaign to keep the worst singer on thw show. It is only because the Sarah Palin haters don't like seeing Bristol even on the show that this is an issue.
Nothing like a True Republican
* Only Care About Themselves.
* Will Lie in a Microsecond
* Will Always Cheat & Say anything to win
* Only Morals is Money
This how Obama got elected.
DWTS judges are at fault here. I've been a fan of DWTS many seasons. When I want to keep someone on the show - I vote.
I've also appreciated when the judges are honest with "stars" who are not up to par after many weeks of competition. In the past no matter how much they like and admire stars they finally have said, "this is a dancing competition and we're in week 4 or 5 and you should be doing better at this stage of the game."
Despite scoring Bristol the lowest, but by no means as low as her dancing often deserved, they NEVER said the words they've said many times before.
I also don't appreciate the other inconsistencies I saw this season....Carrie Ann all of a sudden not seeing lifts! I counted two with Dereck and Jennifer in routines where they were scored a 30??? The harsh criticism of Kurt when he was outdancing Bristol and in the instant dance even Brandi. Shame on the judges for allowing all this to come to pass by feeling (I can only assume) sorry for a young unwed mother. This girl could take the criticism as we saw when her true feelings emerged at the end of the show. It was up to the judges to give it to her like they gave to most of the rest of them. When the judges are honest, the fans generally follow suit and vote "nondancers" off.
I have absolutely no idea how Bristol dancing has anything to do with politics... She's not her mother... she's not a conservative, or a liberal, she's nothing yet, she's still a kid for gosh sakes... a kid that can dance better than I will ever be able to, but worse than most other dancers on the show with the possible exception of The Hoff. Did she improve as the show progressed? Of course, so did EVERYONE ELSE! If she wasn't Sarah's daughter, would she have gotten past the gorilla costume week? I have to think not. She might have gotten up to that point on her own, but that would have been the end of her on that show.
I do think that the winners certainly deserved to win and earned it. Bristol on the other hand is just a lucky nobody who just happens to be related to a somebody and used that for all it was worth to get father than she deserved based on the merits of her own talents.
shawn, i don't think most people that vote are that dishonest to manipulate the voting system. plus, to all the "conservatives" that said it was bs to think that people were manipulating the system are in denial. if i were bristol or anyone related to her i would be embarrased knowing that i really suck and most people don't really want me to win. sure it is just a show but it is f'd up that honest people can't see who they vote for when. what a bunch of losers the teapartiers are. really. so proud of cheating. those must be the principles they want us to go back to.
Agreed - is this the type of people we really want in office? People who think it's ok to cheat and, in effect, stuff the ballot box? Tea Partiers and Palin supporters should be ashamed, they have put Bristol in a very embarrasing position.
If Bristol had an OUNCE of integrity or decency ( which she apparently DOES NOT ) she'd relinquish her "corruptly gained" position in the finals to Brandy who actually DESERVED to be there.
But.. Bristol is a Palin and like the rest of her family lacks integrity, morals or ethics and will follow in her mother's footsteps as a corrupt and dishonest MEDIA WHORE.
If I'm ever looking for credibility and integrity, I will skip your place. How juvenile and hateful. tsk tsk
Most people don't cheat but 1 person votin 100 times negates 99 honest votes. 300 votes??? "Vote early! Vote often."
mslexie, post #3: What a mouth full of empty words coming from a person of that other party. If you had entered the primaries you could have beat Obama
The point, I think, is this:
The ability to cheat the vote is available for everyone to take advantage of. The fact that some republicans or "teapartiers" utilized it first just shows how lazy everyone else is.
as the article stated:
The fact that Bristol Palin is popular enough that people go out of their way to vote multiple times is merely an endorsement of her ability to draw crowds-- awe or ire, your pick. As I said in an earlier comment, the TV producers don't give a damn as long their ratings are still spiked, and that is exactly the draw that Bristol Palin brings.
"Agreed - is this the type of people we really want in office?"
You know what doubledogs, you're right.....those filthy filthy republicans and tea party types!
What we need are more like Charlie Rangel, Maxine Waters and Edie Bernice Johnson! Those people are class acts!
Bristol and the rest of the Palins are not normal people they are out for the money and act like TPT
Yes these people are EXACTLY who want in office, anyone but the lying, cheat, thieving and lack of moral terpitude that the Democrats have shown since JFK and his sleaze bag affairs. The Democrats are the Prty of aholes and awipes and lack of ANY sort of MORALS.
This is even more evident as a result of the last elections. Are you poor Liberals STILL suffering from denial?
like anything else that cam be voted on, if you are not happy with a situation that quiting bitching and vote or shut up.
And yes, the votes for Bristol Palin are a smack in the face of your POTUS--and most deservedly so.
Period. End of statement. A lot of fun
I just love the ReTHUGlicon version of "logic". It's ok to exploit a loophole for unethical and immoral purposes and those of us that are actually honest are being called stupid for not taking advantage of an opportunity to also be dishonest ???? WTF ????
Excuse me while I vomit in my mouth a little.
WMG? Lazy?! I've heard folks voting for other dancers say they couldn't even get in to vote. Lines were all tied up and times when some did get in to vote, they received the message: Your amount of votes is already used up. Please... before making broad statements like you have, do a little research.
As to IP addresses, cookies, and such. I pretty much consider the people at ABC tech to be rather.... clueless. First... ever heard of rolling IP addresses? I've had one and I think I have one now. Second.. I know for a FACT I can use my neighbors cable line. They have their system WIDE open. I don't though. I pay for my service honestly and will use mine.
As to Bristol: she said she DESERVED to be in the finals. I would so love to facepalm that. I think the palins are just as dishonest with themselves as they seem to be with everyone else. Ya.... by voting for Bristol, they are not doing her any favors. So the teapartiers are voting for her but probably also so is votefortheworst.com. A lot of folks on the ABC board are NOT happy with this.
I hear a lot about 'hate' from the bristol supporters. I'm sorry if we don't agree with your choice but the FACT is, not liking the same choice as you does NOT equal hate. In fact, I see a great many feeling sorry for Bristol. Willow and Bristol have a pathetic mother. It's no wonder they're turning out to be like her. Sara might consider that a compliment but, I can assure you, a lot of us other people... do NOT. (note I did not say: ALL of us Americans).
I do not feel that Bristol Palin being in the finals has a whole lot to do with politics .. well, Washington politics anyways! I recall, in prior seasons, more talented performers being sent home before some more popular personalities. In my view, as lovely as Cloris Leachman is, she lasted longer than she probably should have as did, perhaps, Steve-O, Jerry Springer and maybe (as much as I love her) even Marie Osmond .. to name just a few.
I think it's a situation for the show to look at putting more weight into the Judges' scores. Then again, if viewers think Bristol fans are beating the system there's nothing stopping them from voting, voting, voting for their favorite .. more talented .. performer(s).
Its ok to disagree, I just don't believe we need so much hatefulness. (grrr!)
Like how the repukelicans and teabaggers think it's okay to cheat, as usual.
Funny how they forget Henry Hyde, Newt Gingrich, Mark Sanford, David Vitter, Ensign, flip-flopping McCain who all were cheaters, and the 1st two real hypocrites going after Clinton while they were simultaneously carrying on affairs.
Then we can move on to the future house speaker John Boehner who wants to defund the Ethics committee, to the dismay of the teabaggers.
I would even go as far to say the producers are cheating to create controversy and buzz for the show.
This is a TV show which allows for multiple votes by individuals. People have voted for Palin because she is their "Favorite Star" and that's what Tom Bergeron tells us to do at the end of the show. "Vote for your favorite star."
Teabaggers tainting the results. All though I'll give them credit. I didn't think they were smart enough to use a computer.
You guys are a disgrace to the nation. If she wins everyone now knows that it was tainted due to political motivation. Something that Bristol will have to live with the rest of her life. Every time she looks at the Mirrored ball she'll think that the only way she won it was because of Teabagger vote fraud, and she'll know she didn't deserve it.
Nah, we're just voting like Democrats - Often and under as many names as possible, some of them even dead. You know, kinda like ACORN. LOL! See ya Tuesday for the RESULTS!
Hardly. Nope you guys are acting just like a Neocon. Putting Party before country. Or in this case a worthless cow that can;t dance before someone that deserves it. Typical. You ruined the country, now your going to ruin the show.
Toph - do you actually think the Tea Party is organizing against you through DWTS? Is this how you think they get their message out? Do you actually believe that this is the first time that vote fraud has occurred on these rediciulous shows. We are led to believe that Liberals are the "intellectuals" of our society, yet, when threatened, you resort to sophomoric insults and childish behavior. You betray your fellow smaties.
It is just amazing how the libtards and take anything and claim someone is trying to ruin the country. Get out of the celler into the sun light. Ya'll need some help. It's TELEVISION not a takeover of the country. (course I'm not always really sure about the goals and ambitions of the dems.)
This is great. Teabaggers cheating and proud of it. Less and less credible every moment.
The original stand of the teabaggers was (and is) laudable, deserving of respect and consideration. Too bad the party was co-opted by the conservatives and then twisted to become a farce. You hear that, you hacks? Get out of the Teaparty and leave it to the people who care about their ideals, not to the idealogues.
Mumble, mumble. (If I wrote what I wanted to, I wouldn't only be banned from the board, some self styled "Conservative Patriot" would try to take my computer away from me.)
Dragonmaster:
Remember that your impression of the "teapartiers" is largely based on media accounts of their behavior, of which (and I have witnessed this 1st hand) the networks specifically avoid the stoic, intelligent protesters who can articulate their beliefs rationally and intelligently, and get their cameras and microphones jammed directly into the face of the biggest, dumbest, loudest redneck they can find at the rally and then call him a "spokesman" for the tea party movement. It's ridiculous.
What's worse, is that it has already been proven that some left-wing political action parties actually send their "agents" into these rallies with the express purpose of undermining their credibility by acting like idiots. As you say, "the original stand of the teabaggers was (and is) laudable, deserving of respect and consideration." There are many still in the movement who stand for the "original" ideal. You just won't see them in the news, especially not a liberally bent news source like MSNBC.
agree totally
You know, kinda like ACORN. LOL! See ya Tuesday for the RESULTS!
Another idiot that did not get the message the Acirn thing was a lie. Poor fellow
toph - and bristal is spouting off on the show promoting the teaparty agenda every chance she gets, right?
I think most of those (including toph) posting against the tea party are really conspiracy nuts and like being stroked.
By the time the next DWTS hits the little screen who will you then attack, a liberal, democrat, republican, little old lady or little old man??
Well, when you're cut from the same cloth and know that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, then I'm pretty sure she would be fine with winning by cheating .... after all, Sarah Palin I'm sure raised her to be same kind of little obnoxious kunt the Sarah herself has become...
New Moon I'm sure your family would be proud that you used such an ugly word to describe someone.
It's TELEVISION not a takeover of the country.
Trouble is they are working on that also. And dumb enough to show us how they plan to accomplish it.
Sounds like the democrats are bad sports yet again. Maybe they should just grow up and learn to get along. Let her dance, it doesn't mean that she will still win.
Oh the Pubs are sore losers too. What did the pubs do the last 2 years when the Dems had the house. They sat in the corner and cried NO NO NO. Be fair, both sides act like children while the rest of us suck on it.
Right bad sports when the Palin Fanboys/girls readily cheat and promot it. What ever happened to right and wrong and having a sense of honor?
Bristol has a great sense of honor.....she didn't vote. The people who like her voted. Plenty of unworthy people have won competitions.....even the presidency.
IF she could DANCE, they wouldn't need to cheat to get her to the finals... however......
I'm a democrat and I voted for Bristol. I believe the premise of the show was to take a non-dancer and watch them grow as a dancer. I believe Bristol has done that. By the way, I would never vote for her mother, but I am not holding her mother's views against her.
I do not think it was Democrats boasting on facebook on how they scammed the system. It was Republicans.
logdump - probably right, it was probably teenagers voting, just because they could scam the system. Such rebellious young people trying to show the adults that they are adults. Wonder how many will be conned into supporting the liberal way of life of entitlements for all and to all a good entitlement
I suppose it is time for you, logdump, to retire to the little room and dump another log! lol!.
nanacj: no the premise of the show is to have STARS compete and the best improve. Since when did Bristol become a star?
moonlight - When I look back at the list of "stars" on this show, I have a hard time qualifying businessmen as stars. Many of their stars, I personally have never heard of. So.. as I said before, taking a non-dancer and watching them improve is what this show is about.
Who cares about the Politics. America is turning into a Third World Country. I know dozens who are leaving here after retirement. This is just a tip of the iceberg....ohh and she can't dance worth a damn.....Everyone who is voting for her...enjoy the cheats, frauds and whatever .....that's all that will be left here......
She sucks, and needs thousands of people to dishonestly prop her up.
And pointing that out gets you labeled as a 'libtart' or some empty epitaph. These people are ridiculous.
The whole show to gain ratings tries to select non-dancers that have potential ratings appeal. The bigger the appeal, the more who vote. That is why some dancers who don't do as well stick around, so stop the sour grapes - the show is functioning as designed.
wonder how many read the article to the end?
Haven't read any answers to the authors question yet, but I did like stirring the pot some. At least dbakron is one of the few here who understand what the show is about.
No it will not as this show has proven. This was note based on true talent just a great deal of unfair online voting. This country will never allow online voting for that reason. Palin herself is not to be trusted on anything she says or does and is certainly not Presidential material for this country, and the number one reason is she is dangerous. Most of America is intelligent enough to know that this girl does not have talent to dance and her mother does not have the intelligence or background to be President of this country.
Listen to yourself....what the heck is all this vehemance over DWTS. Why not take a look at something that counts and needs close attention..like the current corrupt administration.
We have enough dimwits in America that actually think she is Presidential material and with them and the Dibold machines who knows what the right wing can do...
logdump - and we all know how the democrats pushed/guided the jr 2005 senator from illinois in 3 1/2 years to be in a position to campaign for president in 2008, not on experience or leadership ability but on the failed premise of "hope and change". I did so enjoy obamas words when he met with his military advisors for the first time - guys, I don't want to screw this up!. Such confidence!
The answer is an obvious no. Having been in computers since their evolution I can safely say there is no software program that has ever been made or will there be safe enough because it cannot be cracked.
and we all know how the democrats pushed/guided the jr 2005 senator from illinois in 3 1/2 years to be in a position to campaign for president in 2008, not on experience or leadership ability but on the failed premise of "hope and change".
More right wing misinformation by a know troll. The people got Obama elected and hope and change are underway but you do not like it so you vote kno all the time. That line is for the morons who are dumb enough to vote for your side.
The voting should be left to the 3 Judges only as they are skilled dancers and know the craft......
perhaps, but ratings demand audience participation.
American... then you allow the audience to vote but at a lesser weight.
Man, the left is losing it. Everything is a conspiracy theory. Everything is there to beat them down. They really should take some meds cause they are hallucinating..
Have you not seen Bristol dance? To think she has honestly earned her place in this competition means you should be the one taking the meds because you must be hallucinating...
It's no conspiracy theory when a Tea Party openly admits to casting "300 votes" and thinks it's okay. did you read the article???
"Lord have mercy, I voted for 3 hours online! I got 300 in," one Palin fan wrote...
How does that make it a conspiracy theory? It's TRUE, what are you, brain dead?
And the Pubs are of sound mind. Ya! Pubs screaming socialist, communist, fascist the last 2 years. Obama is taking over the US and subverting the constitution. Pub leaders threw all this out there and people like you believed it and ate every word of it. You pubs do have short memories. The dems are not much better. So don't call me the usual slurs of lib etc.... I think for myself.
I thought it was the right that thought the govt caused 911 and that the govt is the ones that want to take over.
Truth is truth but then again if you only watch Fox News Truth is just like a unicorn.
That comment makes little to no sense. Try again.
As a voting republican who is vehemently anti-Obama and (worse) Pelosi, all I have to say is this:
If Palin runs for president of the United States and if she gets the republican nomination, I will not vote republican and will campaign for any, and I mean ANY, third party candidate on the roster.
That woman, all you Democrats will be proud to know, is a long-shot for republican nomination. She is too divisive and, frankly, stupid a candidate for the republicans to take the risk in nominating her. I suspect that you will see a much more reserved, moderate candidate on the ticket in 2012, not some hair-brained "mama grizzly" smirking from the podium (oh gosh, can I call you Joe?). America has had enough of extreme politicians-- Bush and Obama, different ends of the spectrum, both on the far reaches, both BAD for the country. We need middle ground. We need moderation. Palin is neither.
Did I mention as well that she's stupid? Oh, and her abandonment of the Alaskan Governor's seat does not speak well to her ability to govern in a partisan landscape, which you'd be a fool not to realize that that's what America is right now.
Yep...Senator McCain..you created a monster...Thank you for that!
Btw...I'd watch my back if I were you....Sarah gives new meaning to ruthless :-)
Right on, Wolffchad!
Theory? Go get on facebook or any other message board seach for Palin and they will explain how to scam it duhhhhh. Its a fact you cant handle fact you limp wrist.
We did not hallucinate the last 10 years - 8 of which, you were in power. Happy now?
Thank You Arrive-1. My sentiments exactly-Im amazed at the selective memory of some voters. I don't remember eight years of "milk and honey". O and must I add the money thats been spent on those awful wars. I just wish the Pubs would have left some money as Mr Clinton did! All you ever hear is the Dems are bankrupting America-but fail to add it was already in progress:)
Exactly Shawn, well said! Thank you
Oh, my GOD!! As if multiple blocks of voting haven't ever happened before! ABC says for the viewers to vote for their favorite every 7.6 seconds on the freaking show and then panic when it actually happens for one dancer. This is NOT about who the best dancer is (and if you believe it is, you're really freaking stupid), it's about who can get the most votes (a la American Idol, America's Got Talent, etc., etc. Give it a break.
The dems are just po'd because they didn't think of it first.
I DIDN'T vot for her 300 times in 3 hours. Who said the Dems didn't think of it. It's just strange to me they didn't count my non-votes as negatives. Oh well, there's still some bugs in the system.
Well... if Bristol wins... YOU will have proven our point... cuz she sure isn't the best dancer
Nor Donny Osmond.
This is NOT about who the best dancer is ,it's about who can get the most votes
I don't understand , are you talking about real votes? cause the article is about how they cheated.
Anyone remember master p? The judges gave him 2's and he STILL went to the next week because of the voters. Didn't hear you crying foul then did I? Contrary to your belief, this is not politically motivated. I honestly think Bristol would rather be at home with her new child that she misses (she even stated that on the show). But, in spite of critiscism from people like yourself, she stands tall and perserveres! I honestly thought she would get voted off, but the American public spoke. yes, there were most likely some people who abused the email voting system. but who's to say they haven't been doing that with Kyle, Jennifer or Brandy? What about the Cheetah girl? She was the best dancer that season and no-one voted for her so she got voted off! It's a show. It's not anything more than. There's no statement to be made here. Well, except that even though Bristol knows she not that good, she gives 100% and really tries her hardest (and it shows unlike Master P who couldn't have cared less and kept getting voted through anyways).
She
everyone knows they keep the underdog for the first couple weeks for whatever reasons..they're older and are entertaining..they are sweet, but you don't see the cream of the crop...you know, those who can actually dance getting the boot instead of a talented less person...this year is unbelievably rigged! Bristol is the epitomy of the statement... white men (palins) can't dance!!
Jeff McBride's comment is right on point! I agree 100%! Thanks Jeff!
From what I can rememeber Master P was eliminated in the 4th round---yes he was horrible (to say the least) but you would have to blind and a little mental to think Bristol should still be on the show...actually she should have been gone the 3rd or 4th round as well
Master p did not make it through the next round and in that round there were two dancers worse than him
Marie Osmond lost 30 pounds on DWTS. Bristol has gotten even heavier. Her rehearsal shots do not support your theory she is giving 100%. I could forgive her for being such a clumsy, whining, overweight oaf until she starts saying she deserves to be there. She is an insult to both art and entertainment.
You all are a bunch of LOSERS!! I saw this headline and wondered how many people would be going to post a comment on it complaining about politics or something else as if it was important. This is a TV SHOW!!!!!! Who cares if she won?? What difference in the world does it make. Maybe you haven't noticed this is about entertainment, and none of these peoples' actual jobs is dancing. They are having fun, the judges are having fun, and you should have fun. But since you have nothing else to live for you can't take it if Bristol Palin wins. I wouldn't care if George Bush won anymore than if Bill Clinton won this, it's a TV show!!! Get a job people, it's Friday afternoon during work hours, don't you have anything better to do. I'm almost embarrassed that I'm even posting this but I just can't believe how many people are taking it so personal that Bristol won. Get a life, she has a life, she's not worried about your opinion of her dancing anymore, the show is over, neither should you.
Ditto
Actually she does care, she is always whining about it.
Tell that to the lady who spent 3 hours voting 300x for Bristol, or all the people that are cheating over a t.v. show.
If anyone was in a contest and worked just as hard as the next person but lost just because the other person (or people voting for that person) cheated you would be just a tiny little bit upset as well.
My question now is, why are you so worried about other people's opinions? Because clearly you care enough to rant about it.
You're ranting.............................hahahahahaha
Why in the world does anyone watch this stuff anyway? It's no improvement over the old Major Bowes Amateur Hour or plate-spinners on Ed Sullivan. Sorry, just can't get all breathless over who gets what score.
Loved those plate spinners, but the Gong Show was the greatest of them all.
Hooray for Bristol. I love to see the underdog win. If your dancer doen't win, then those who support Bristol must be cheating. What a bunch of garbage. Typical trash news from MSNBC! I am so glad she has kept winning. It was a pleasure to see her dance and improve. She was not a professional to begin with and has to work harder than anyone. She just outperformed the rest. But, how the liberals hate seeing anyone but their own win. They would give the win to the creepiest dancers just to keep Bristol from winning. This is one of the best Dancing of the Stars I have ever watched. I'll admit that I have only watched it a few times. The last interesting show was when Earl Campbell was dancing. He also had to work hard to win and he was wonderful. Great work, Bristol. Don't listen to the whinners!!!
nary, are you nuts?
Mary-516377... your last 2 brain cells are fighting over the ectasy pill you took ten years ago. You are clearly a fool... I hope that you don't vote and more importantly don't hold any position of authority. The last thing our ailing economy needs is misguided, partisan tards like yourself. Go join the Army or something... I did. Best thing I ever did. Be hero for once in your life.
Actually Mary, the have admitted to cheating, are you blind? You must be to think that she has worked harder than the other contestants. Just because someone wants another contestant to win, fairly doesn't mean they are a liberal. Can you leave the politics out of your rant speech?
Risha, JBVR6-- quit your whining. No one "cheated." As the article stated (did you bother to read it before commenting?):
I agree. I am not politically motivated nor did I vote at all during DWTS, However Bristol is my favorite to win. I really enjoy watching her dance and think that she did an incredible job in the semi finals. However, the judges are not fair to her and always mention the amount of improvement instead of the just complimenting her on a job well done. It is very annoying,in fact nobody congratulated her for getting to the finals as they did the other two couples who made it. The focus was all on cry baby Brandy's loss and asking her back next week even though she was the LOSER. Congrats Bristol!!!!!!You are an excellent dancer and role model:)))))))))))
Outperformed????? LOL you must be her Hockey Mom if you think that...
Erm, I'm slightly confused as to how she is a role model. Have we already forgotten her teenage pregnancy? Who’s watching her baby while she’s on the show? Not her, I’d be willing to bet. But yes, great role model…definitely represents the average teenage mother who drops out of school to care for the baby… (sarcastic) However, we obviously want our kids to aspire to be just like her...
What is that message that we are sending to our kids? “Have a kid as a minor. You’ll become famous and end up on a show.” The only reason that Bristol is famous is because she became a scandal. But she loves it, doesn’t she?
EXCELLENT DANCER AND ROLE MODEL!!!LMFAO!!...If my daughter got pregnant not once but twice by an idiot I would be TOO embarassed to be in the public eye let alone allow her to be in the public. But cheating com'n folks.. how can you justify? Oh did we forget ELECTION 2000 that quick? FLORIDA, brothers Gov., "HANGING chads"..SOUND FAMILIAR..Cheating has JUST started..Palins theme song should be"We've only just begun"..BEWARE!! whatever your political stance is. WE SHOULD NOT TOLERATE CHEATERS..REGGIE BUSH TO GEORGE BUSH TO PALIN TO ...
Bristol outperformed the rest? In a pigs eye......she's a hippo in a tutu..........
Mary.
Please re-read the article and then come back to post.
"Lord have mercy, I voted for 3 hours online! I got 300 in," one Palin fan wrote in a comment on the HillBuzz blog, which is leading the charge on Bristol Palin's behalf.
Enough Said....
When the voting is basically a popularity contest and not a technical vote what do you expect. Even the Olympic judging has been biased for political/ideological reasons. It is just a TV show. Who really cares about who wins? It is all just ratings and $$$s for the TV network. So Palin won. So what? It's not like she won an election to public office. Lighten up and either enjoy the program or change channels.
bristol palin and her mother are publicity/media whores, plain and simple. it's the only thing they know how to do. sarah palin uses facts as often as one of her grizzlies use toilet paper.
she started with no experience.....gets better every week...why can't people beleive that some us vote for the ones that continue to do well week after week...
It is hard to vote online with multi e-mails as the system reads if your computer has submitted so this only works if you really want to cheat bad enough to go to every computer at work and do it...I'm tired of the professional people with dance or stage experience always winning
I quit watching after Brandy was voted off, it's definitely not fair how the voting is done. I agree the 3 judges should make the final decision.
Thanks to the liberals and their "whoa is me" attitude that they have instilled into the public. What ever happened to having a backbone in life. Maybe instead of a picture of an average jackass, the dems should have a picture of Eeyore. I mean lets be a little more specific eh?
It's "woe is me", moron, not "whoa is me". Learn word definitions, it'll help with your job at McDonald's.
As a graduate with a degree in English literature, I have to say I rather liked the grammatical gaff of "whoa is me." It's a surprisingly accurate description of today's stoned, tv-addicted children. But you are correct, susudio, it is "woe," you grammar Nazi. :-)
Ahhhhhhh...how sweet is the grammarian sound!
Isn't it supposed to be "Dancing with the stars" I didn't know that Bristol Palin was a star????
Please tell me what defines a star?
I'm wondering too? Was Kenny Mayne a star? how about Tucker Carlson? Albert Reed, Mark Cuban, Steve Wozniak, Tom Delay?
You are so right! Bristol is not a star and I kind of feel bad for her because she didn't even believe or think that she was going to make it to the finals.....at least with her reaction that is. Neither did her partner ....her was shocked most of all.
Joel, yeah Obama isn't a media whore at all, only the Palin family. How many TV shows did this guy go on? I know Jon Stewart and the View are highly regarded for the Commander in Chief, so maybe I shouldn't go there. All politicians are media whores, they all now spend 95% campaigning and 5% actually working. Maybe if Obama and Bush spent less time on vacation and doing corny interviews on every TV station they wouldn't see their rating plummet, obviously I'm alluding to Bush when he was in office not now. Give Bristol a break man, she isn't her mom, at least not yet, she's a young woman who got invited to do a TV show, at least she isn't Lindsay Lohan
Can we live 1.5 years without all this conservative/liberal hyperbole? I am getting sick again.
Well go figure cheating at winning, yup the GOP family values at work, teach your kids to cheat at all costs even when you suck at something, worked for W, the Supremes gave him the Presidency no doubt when the Wazilla hillbilly runs for Prez there will be duplicate votes cast on a grand scale, and they are always bitchen about ACORN, these people put ACORN to shame, and they were a ligitimate orginization that got sucker punched by FAUX NEWS and R AILES. So whose watching the kid while the teen queen is burning up the dance floor?
Sucker punched? Dang you really are delusional, aren't you? Either that or your burying your head in the sand. Can't decide which.
McBride,
It is those that still believe the FOX news BS story about Acorn that are delusional!
The worker that talked to the Frat boy and Girl from FOX called the POLICE immediately after they left his office ! IT is a matter of PUBLIC RECORD! Yet FOX news decided to skip that part of the story! They are nothing but lying goose stepping scum.
As for the Palin Porker waddling her way through this contest with fraudulent right wing help, way to teach your kids morals.
ACORN is a despicable organization and got what they deserved. There were plenty more instances of voter registration fraud perpetrated by that organization than that one FOX news story- do some research. And sfilutze, you obviously didn't read the article. There was no "cheating" involved:
Seriously? This is pretty pathetic, don't you think? I mean, fanatic fans aren't anything new. I don't see how Palin is to blame for the actions of her fan base.
Frankly, I read the article because I thought someone was actually just covering a relatively known but frequently ignored issue with these vote in shows. The political tie in was a stretch at best, ackwardly written, and a bit pathetic in my opinion. I would have preferred more concentration on the actual issue of what "reality" tv is doing regarding the vote process since that was supposed to be the point of the article.
As far as the Tea Party is concerned, they don't have to actively do anything when people keep trying to tie everything to them. When a journalist takes a long known loophole that has been used and abused extensively for an extended period of time and tries to create a political scandal out of it, it reads more like the paranoid delusions of a conspiracy theorist than actual journalism. The supportive evidence in this seems to be a solitary twitter message that may or may not even be true. If it is? So what?
I've witnessed the fanbase of New Kids On The Block hold another member of the same fanbase accountable for having multiple identities and interacting with themselves in an attemp to get the band members attention. As for the power of a real fan base, have you ever seen what the fan base of New Kids On The Block can do to about any server? Become of fan of any of the NKOTB members and see what type of power someone can wield toward a cause. Just watch @DonnieWahlberg for a week and try to keep track of how many different sites crash because the server can't handle the load! Someone who isn't a member of such an influential group can also be used as a wonderful example of this. I've seen @FlossyTheBoss rally the troops for various causes and the effect is just as powerful.
It doesn't take much research at all for you to go to almost any celebrity and/or their fanbase to see the influence they can wield. It seems as though there could have been a second issue addressed here just by discussing that and it may have tied in better with the article the headline addressed.
I've read Mr. Roach's work before and I really enjoyed it a great deal. I particularly enjoy his work for National Geographic. In this piece however, instead of coming across as an accomplished journalist, he looks more like a sour faced little boy who was assigned a fluff piece instead of being given a "real" piece of journalism. It is disappointing to say the least.
Palin is the worst dancer in the history of the show, next to Tom Delay. This is all about hyperbole and it is fixed. This whole thing is disgraceful. Bristol is a sore point like her mother and the republican party in everything that is about common sense and decency. Go back to Alaska.
Hello, its the public that is voting for Bristol. All you liberals sound just like the whinners you are. Get over it. I guess you liberals are too stupid to figure out how to vote multiple times via email. And I thought you were the supposed intellectuals. BRISTOL'S GONNA WIN IT ALL, BRISTOL'S GONNA WIN IT ALL, BRISTOL'S GONNA WIN IT ALL. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. Take that you liberal suckers!
I don't watch the show and don't care if Bristol wins it all. I also only vote once in polls. Call me a foolish but I believe in honesty. If you haev to cheat to win, what does that win say about you?
It's not a loop-hole when everybody know about it. The only who use it are the ones who really care one way or another anyway, so the outcome is still fair. Who cares about it more? The fan who puts in 1,000 calls instead of 1. They win fair and square.
How would you like it if we allowed our voting for elections here to become corrupt. May be we will have to dip our fingers in Ink like the Iraqis and Afghanistan people so we can not vote more than once. One person= 1 vote.
If you are so worried about the tea party keeping her in, then you and all of your friends should vote for the other dancers. Cry cry cry.....
I have better things to do with my time than to watch an immoral teenage girl get kudos from the tea party hypocrites.
why is she on this show anyways? she isn't a star. the only thing she's ever done in her life is lay back and open up her legs. and if her ignorant mother becomes president, i'm leavin' this country behind.
I am surprised that Faux news hasn't been promoting Bristol Palin as well. Scary thing is the GOP is on a roll. They have Faux news and all its pundits behind them to keep saying negative things about the democrats and it sucks to see a conservative blogger (Dugan) to tell people how to cheat the system so Bristol stays in and better dancers get eliminated. This is from the article.
"Lord have mercy, I voted for 3 hours online! I got 300 in," one Palin fan wrote in a comment on the HillBuzz blog, which is leading the charge on Bristol Palin's behalf.
Come on... smart move to put her on the show..... Fox News is all about ratings and so is this... And the remark about the legs was somewhat uncalled for....