'American Idol' being picked by power dialers

By Ron Harris
Associated Press

SAN FRANCISCO — Producers of the hit Fox show "American Idol" say the talent contest is being slammed by "power dialers" trying to influence results by making as many as 10,000 votes a night from a single phone line.

With fast Internet connections and computer autodialing software, about 100 "phone phreaks" are casting thousands of votes with the touch of a button, producers said this week in response to questions from The Associated Press.

"They're all over the country and they tend to be slamming the system at all ends," said Michael Eaton, of FreemantleMedia, the show's producer.

An individual who lacks this technology doesn't stand a chance at matching the power dialers, Eaton said. He also said that 95 percent of all calls are getting through to the toll-free numbers representing each competitor. The calls then are tabulated to determine each week's survivors and loser.

Producers could have imposed stricter rules to prevent the results from being skewed, said telephone systems expert Dave Hoch.

Instead, Fox Broadcasting Co. has promoted the calling volume as a sign of the show's success.

Vote totals have grown from 9.2 million July 30 to 14.5 million Tuesday, and the show has ranked in the top 10 in Nielsen Media Research ratings.