There are plenty of reasons to defend Sanjaya

To hear critics talk, Sanjaya Malakar’s ascendancy to the final eight on “American Idol” is a travesty, threatening the success of the show’s brand name and the credibility of the musical competition. That couldn’t be further from the truth.

Sanjaya is not the best singer in the history of the competition. He’s not even the best of this season’s finalists. But he’s not a disaster either. In fact, those who are looking to tear him down or use him as an example of the show’s weakness need to keep a few things in mind before ranting away.

Sanjaya’s not the one who put himself into the semifinals
Every time the judges rip on Sanjaya, or insinuate that he shouldn’t be on the show, keep in mind that it wasn’t the show’s viewers who made him a candidate in the first place. That honor belongs to none other than the three judges; Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul, and Simon Cowell.

Those are the three who pick the show’s 24 semifinalists, and the viewers have no say in the process until that stage of the game. Moreover, the producers, editors and judges set Malakar up in a great position to succeed by giving him a ton of airtime on the audition episodes, then making him the only teenager among the 12 male finalists. In a crowded semifinal field, he stood out for his youth, giving him an early voting bloc at a time when some rivals were struggling to get their names out there.

So if the viewers are being dumb and short-sighted by continuing to vote for Sanjaya, what does that make the people who put his candidacy forward in the first place?

His success is not the result of an Internet conspiracy
Don’t overestimate the effects of the Howard Stern show, much less Web sites like votefortheworst.com . Their effect on the results is likely negligible, because the producers make it difficult for that sort of effort to succeed.

The phone numbers for each contestant change every week. That means that someone who hates the show enough to want to see it fail has to watch it anyway on Tuesday nights in order to get the phone number to call. They then have to wait until 9 p.m. in their time zone to call in, and probably will have to keep trying for at least several minutes in order to get through. How many people who don’t even like the show are putting in that kind of effort each week?

Slide show   ‘Idol’s’ mane attraction What Sanjaya Malakar lacks in vocal range, he more than makes up for in follicle fashion.

Also keep in mind that the naysayer Web sites simply pick a new candidate once the old one is voted off. Sanjaya wasn’t the first to be targeted by the Web sites this season; that was Antonella Barba. And if Web sites can’t keep a contestant who has risqué pictures (some apparently real, some not) added to the Internet by the day, what are the odds that they can lead someone like Malakar to glory?

There’s always a worst-case option to vote for; when Sanjaya goes it will simply be Phil Stacey, or Haley Scarnato, or one of the other finalists. So the explanation for Sanjaya’s success isn’t the Internet. It’s more likely that:

In popularity contests, nice guys finish first
Love his singing or hate it, there’s no way Sanjaya comes across as anything but likeable. He’s a 17-year-old kid in an adult competition, hearing every week that he isn’t good enough to be there. How many teenagers could handle that strain without attacking the judges with a music stand?

Yet Malakar doesn’t react as though he’s bothered by the criticism. He knows the judges don’t like him, but he reacts with a smile and an occasional half-hearted barb to their comments. He has nothing but good cheer for everyone each week, and indeed tends to come across as one of the calmer, more self-assured competitors.

In addition, Sanjaya’s strategy has been more than a little brilliant. The Mohawk haircut he sported a couple of weeks ago got him a ton of extra attention, to the point where Ryan Seacrest sported a faux-hawk while hosting the next day’s show. Sure, he looked ridiculous. But he got people interested in him, to the point where some watch the show now to see what Sanjaya will do next. That’s not something many of his rivals can say.

Even when he dresses normally, he looks and acts like a nice kid that the big mean adults are picking on, and that’s always going to win some sympathy votes. That’s why the judges have gone easier on him in recent weeks, knowing that their vitriol is counterproductive. Alas, for the judges, there’s one more problem.

Sanjaya’s not a bad singer
Sanjaya Malakar has a melodious voice that legitimately has captured a fan base. It might not be everyone’s cup of tea, and it’s not the best in the field, but nor does he sound like a karaoke king who got lost on his way to the bar and wound up onstage.

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