"Who needs Superman when there's Clay Aiken?"

Leonard Monahan Saabye wrote this on his blog today about American Idol. It's a fantastic start to the day - especially the last line!

When did it happen? Will someone please tell me? At what point did we decide that a TV reality show with a bunch of pop star wannabes was so captivating that it was capable of crushing not just the Grammys but the Olympics as well?

Such is the power of American Idol. A piece in The LA Times does a pretty good job of dissecting AI and why we are so drawn to it as a society. In light of the mounting wave of consumer collaboration, customization, flashmobs, the blogosphere, podcasting and all the rest, the success of AI makes perfect sense.

Who needs Superman when there's Clay Aiken?