Will Sanjaya save or destroy ‘American Idol’?

Simon smiled and agreed, and then said, “Sanjaya, I don’t think it matters any more what we say, actually. I genuinely don’t. I think you are in your own universe, and if people like you, good luck.”

With that, he essentially gave up, and Simon Cowell doesn’t usually give up. He was baffled not just by Sanjaya fever (obsession over contestants is nothing new; just ask Clay Aiken or a half-dozen other “Idols”), but by how Sanjaya has managed to stay above the bottom two or three during weeks when he clearly belongs there.

That may be in part due to an unusual sort of backlash. People who think he’s a horrible singer (who, confusingly, refer to themselves as “Fanjayas,” as do his real fans) are supporting him. At least, they’re talking about supporting him; actually picking up the phone and calling during the two voting hours on Tuesday evenings requires a different sort of commitment than laughing at the possibility.

Others are just annoyed. Everything Sanjaya’s fans seem to like about him — his ever-changing hair, his awkward stage presence, his massacring of popular music — irritate some “Idol” fans to the point of absolute hysteria, just as they delight the anti-Sanjaya Fanjayas. The media loves all of it, because there are so many new angles to follow.

And that is the key to the Sanjaya mystery: He is something to everyone.

He has genuine fans who love him and fans of the show who loathe him for dragging down what they see as a legitimate singing contest. There are also the people who resent the show and all that it stands for, who see him as their messiah capable of bringing “American Idol” down once and for all.

Together, by talking about him, they’ve lifted Sanjaya up higher than he or the producers could have ever expected.

Because of that, Sanjaya Malakar has become the center of a perfect “American Idol” storm, and his continued presence could destroy the show, save it from itself, or both.

Andy Dehnart is a writer and teacher who publishes reality blurred, a daily summary of reality TV news.

MORE FROM AMERICAN IDOL

Happy birthday, Simon, the best mean Brit ever

Happy birthday, Simon, the best mean Brit ever ‘Idol Gives Back’ returns to ‘American Idol’ Ellen brings EveryFan sensibility to ‘Idol’ Paula Abdul wishes Ellen luck on ‘Idol’   Add American Idol headlines to your news reader: