Double Standard
Frenchie Davis was dumped by ‘American Idol’ in 2003 for lingerie photos that were posted on a Web site. She has moved on to Broadway success and thought she had left a humiliating chapter of her life behind. That changed after current ‘American Idol’contestant Antonella Barba was allowed to stay on the show despite the emergence of racy online photos that were of Barba, especially the latest photos of her posing in the fountain at the WWII Memorial. The first big controversy of the show’s sixth season appeared when fans and a civil-rights activist rallied to Davis’ side, saying she was the victim of unfair and potentially biased treatment.”I’m not bashing ‘Idol’ or Antonella. She’s a beautiful girl and she’s young. I think it’s great that she didn’t have to go through what I went through,” said Davis, who suggested that the show’s producers might have learned from how they treated her. Davis would welcome a public apology from them as “a great start.” But she said she is owed more for “the manner in which I was humiliated and the manner in which Antonella was defended and protected by the same people who humiliated me.”"Now they need to come to the table and see what we can do to make up” for her treatment, Davis said. She declined to say if she would seek a financial settlement or a record contract or other deal. Belinda Foster, Davis’ manager said there are stark differences in the treatment of the two contestants. Fox and ‘American Idol’ producer Nigel Lythgoe have declined further comment on Barba, who will perform again as the contestants are narrowed down this week to the 12 finalists. All the singers, including Barba, have been unavailable for interviews. A source close to the show, who asked not to be identified said Fox and the producers believe seminude photos of Barba were posted without her consent and that racier shots, showing a sex act, were of a woman other than Barba. The producers obviously haven’t seen the lastest photos.
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