New Season Brings New Controversy and Social Networking for Idol Contestants

The addition of Ellen to the judges panel is not the only change for American Idol this year--for the first time in Idol history contestants are allowed to have profiles on Twitter, Myspace and Facebook. In the previous eight seasons social networking was banned for contestants and any pre-existing profiles were deleted before contestants became part of the show.

Now all of the top 24 Idol contestants have been given profiles on Twitter, Myspace and Facebook. All of their profiles were created by Fox and it is not clear what the exact rules for the profiles will be. If you want to keep up with your favorite contestants online you can find a complete list of all of their online profiles here.

This season may have added online profiles, but it did not loose any of its drama and controversy. Chris Golightly, who called himself an orphan when we were first introduced to him on the show, has been kicked out of the top 24 and replaced by Tim Urban.

“It has been determined that Chris Golightly is ineligible to continue in the competition,” a press release from FOX said. “American Idol contestant Tim Urban has replaced Golightly as part of the Top 24.”

Fox has not given the reason why Golightly was taken out of the competition. Another contestant Michael "Big Mike" Lynch was also reportedly booted from the show in late January because his father broke the show's rules of confidentiality by talking to a Florida newspaper. However last night the top 24 was revealed and Lynch's profile is currently still up on American Idol's website.

And on an unrelated Idol note, last night was the first time in six years that Idol did not have the top ratings for its night, instead NBC's coverage of the 2010 Winter Olympics took the top spot.

MySpace Music Premieres New Album From The All American Rejects!

MySpace Music, the world's premiere online music portal, is proud to announce the premiere of When the World Comes Down, the new album from The All-American Rejects. Starting today, fans across the country will be able to stream the entire album for free, giving fans a chance to preview it before the official release on December 16th. The Stillwater, Oklahoma, foursome has been hard at work with producer Eric Valentine (Third Eye Blind, Good Charlotte, Queens of the Stoneage) since 2007 on the record, which follows 2005's double-platinum album, Move Along.

"If Jesus comes back tomorrow with an iPod, When the World Comes Down will be the only record on his 'walking on water' playlist. We could find no greater worthy platform than MySpace Music to premiere this record for our beloved, deserving fans" said Tyson Ritter, lead vocalist for The All-American Rejects.

Recently, the band conducted a karaoke contest on MySpace Karaoke in which fans competed for a chance to meet the band at an All-American Rejects concert of their choosing, in addition to winning the wardrobe from the music video, by uploading videos of themselves singing the album's first single, "Gives You Hell." Winners will be announced on December 23rd.

For more on The All-American Rejects, including the video for "Gives You Hell," be sure to visit their MySpace profile at http://www.myspace.com/allamericanrejects.

Twilight Tid-Bit: Check out Myspace's Artist on Artist: Hayley Williams and Rob Pattinson

Watch Rob Pattinson and Paramore's Hayley Williams, as they meet and talk to each other on MySpace Artist on Artist. Since launching the interview has become the most viewed Artist on Artist of all time!

Artist on Artist: Robert Pattinson & Hayley Williams

Lindsey Lohan is Stressed

Image Source: Gio Rocks!

In between her hectic schedule of buying ratty clothes, getting flour bombed and making cocktails on the sly, Lindsay Lohan has written a couple of posts about her "friend" Samantha Ronson (PLEASE -- we can see this from space!) and her hatred for Facebook.

Sometime this morning, Lindsay posted this on her MySpace:

oy vey! rumors..

just to clear this up.. because i have been getting a lot of emails asking me this one question.

samantha ronson and lindsay lohan (me) are NOT breaking up
:)

Right. Got it. Thanks, mama. We needed to know.

Then, yesterday, La Lolo (Hawaiian, "crazy") wrote about how she's having a fight with Facebook.

Her life is, like, seriously, really stressful:


i signed onto facebook with my new password because someone keeps hacking into my account, and when i typed my password and "log in" name in, a red sentence came up saying..

Account Disabled
Your account has been disabled by an administrator. If you have any questions or concerns, you can visit our FAQ page here.

wow! i was in shock. i clicked on the link that they told me to click on and then to another link that said: my account may of been disabled by mistake. once i got to that it gave a note saying why it was disabled which stated the note saying that it was disabled because they believe that i was a fake of myself. genius. here i am loving facebook (as well as myspace-hehe) but going on facebook to talk to some of my friends and they are thinking that I AM THE "FAKE" OF MYSELF!!! hahahahahaha.. at first i laughed, and then i got angry. angry because, with ALL the people that PRETEND to be me on facebook, they decide to say I AM THE FAKE- of myself. all i can think is, WHO is running this site? and how can they just "disable" my account without first, sending me a warning notice, or AT LEAST asking me some account verification questions. here they are re-designing the look on the site when they should be setting up a more secure way of allowing people to set up an account. i wasn't even under my name, i had a fake name on my account because, obviously i didn't want everyone on facebook to know it was me.

maybe i am just venting, but i am also writing this blog in hopes that the people at facebook will un-disable my account and allow me to sign in the EXACT same way it was, same friends, same emails, same "pets" and so on..

phew! i'm glad i got that off my chest, i needed to let it out somewhere, and myspace has always been the best place for me to do it, especially if i hope for something to change....

MySpace is definitely the place to instigate change, Linds.

Akon To Perform MySpace Music Release Show At China Club In New York CIty!

MySpace Music is proud to announce that Akon will be performing a free show for his MySpace friends at China Club in New York City on Monday, December 1, 2008 - a show being powered by AT&T. Doors for the 21+ Release show will be at 8 p.m., and admittance will be handled on a first-come, first-served basis with a printout of each person's profile displaying Akon in their top eight.

An internationally recognized, Grammy-nominated, multi-platinum selling artist, producer, entrepreneur, and philanthropist, Akon is one of the most influential voices in music today. In addition to having two multi-platinum albums, 21 songs on the Billboard Hot 100, Gold or Platinum status in over 23 countries, and over 145 guest appearances with artists such as Michael Jackson and Gwen Stefani to his credit, Akon is the only artist to ever accomplish the feat of holding both the number one and two spots simultaneously on the Billboard Hot 100 charts twice.

In addition to his accolades, on November 19, 2008 Akon announced that his third album, "Freedom," will be available on "slotMusic™, a new form of DRM-free MP3 music on a microSD card beginning Tuesday, December 2nd - the same date his album will be released digitally and on CD. The new slotMusic card will give fans a chance to enjoy Akon's album in a variety of ways and on a host of devices - from their microSD-enabled mobile phones to their computers and MP3 players. Going beyond the original thirteen songs that are on the CD version of the album, the slotMusic "Freedom" card will carry a mini-documentary video on Akon's life and influences, the new video for "Right Now (Na Na Na)," and exclusive hi-res images and songs including fellow SRC artist Tami Chynn's debut single "Frozen" featuring Akon.

Please visit Akon's MySpace page to preview his new album "Freedom" before it hits stores 12/2 starting this Friday 11/28:http://www.myspace.com/akon

For more information on MySpace Music Release Shows, please visit: http://www.myspace.com/hiphop

China Club
268 W. 47th St.
New York, NY 10036
(212) 398-3800
http://www.chinaclubnyc.com/

Woman Goes on Trial in MySpace Hoax

Photo Credit: TinaMeier Web

As the victim of cyber-bullying (from a 60-year-old groupie of a no-name bar band, three years ago), it's gratifying to see this case be brought to justice. (For the record, she backed off after I sent the full phalanx after her...let this be a warning to everyone who dares to screw with me that I'm NOT afraid of ANYONE -- male OR female -- and I'll NEVER hesitate to use anything to positively annihilate you if you come after me, my family, or my friends. My personal mantra: Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I have no fear, for I am the meanest motherf***er in the valley. Consider THAT the next time you try something clever...).

The Associated Press reports that a Missouri woman, her teenage daughter and an employee used an elaborate Internet ruse to terrorize a 13-year-old neighbor girl who later committed suicide, a federal prosecutor said Wednesday.

U.S. Attorney Thomas O'Brien told jurors during his opening statement that Lori Drew helped create a false identity on the social networking site MySpace. Posing online as a teenage boy, Drew befriended Megan Meier, he said.

"The evidence will show that Drew opened the MySpace account and "fully intended to hurt and prey on Megan's psyche," O'Brien told jurors. Drew is accused of harassing Megan with cruel messages that ultimately led her to take her life in 2006.

Prosecutors characterize the case as the nation's first cyber-bullying case, and the results from it could set legal precedents regarding online harassment.

Drew has pleaded not guilty to one count of conspiracy and three counts of accessing computers without authorization. Each count carries a potential sentence of five years in prison.

O'Brien said it's the first time the federal statute on accessing protected computers has been used in a social-networking case. It had been used in the past to address computer hacking.

Defense attorney Dean Steward told jurors that Drew did not violate the Computer Use and Fraud Act and reminded them she was not facing charges dealing with the suicide.
"This is not a homicide case," Steward said.

Before the trial began, Steward tried to get U.S. District Judge George Wu to forbid mention of the suicide. Wu rejected the request but said he would instruct jurors that the case was about whether Drew violated the terms of service of MySpace, not about whether she caused Meier's suicide.

Prosecutors have said Drew targeted Megan because she thought the girl was spreading malicious rumors on MySpace about her own daughter.

Drew discussed the matter with her daughter and Drew's assistant, Ashley Grills, and the three allegedly plotted to invent "an attractive male teenager" on MySpace to find out what was being said about her daughter.

Megan hanged herself after allegedly receiving a message saying the world would be better off without her. Before the suicide, O'Brien said, Megan sent a response to the message saying, "'You are the kind of boy a girl would kill herself over.'"

Jury selection had ended earlier in the day. Questionnaires completed by prospective jurors led Steward to question whether Drew could receive a fair trial. He said that the forms indicated about 80 percent of the candidates had heard about the case and that half had formed "devastating" opinions about Drew.

The case is being prosecuted in Los Angeles because MySpace's computer servers are in the area.

Listen To Beyonce's Album Before Anyone Else!

This is big news, PCM readers!

"I am happy that my fans will get to listen to my new album first at MySpace. I have put my heart and soul into 'I AM...SASHA FIERCE' and cannot wait to hear the feedback from the fans." -- Beyonce

MySpace Music is proud to announce the worldwide premiere of the highly anticipated new album from Beyonce. The album titled “I AM...SASHA FIERCE” will be available on MySpace Music at www.myspace.com/music beginning on Tuesday, November 11 at 12:01am PST. MySpace users worldwide can listen to the entire album for free on MySpace Music a week before its officially released anywhere else. Check out Beyonce's page for her latest music, videos and more at http://www.myspace.com/beyonce.

Photo credit: Peter Lindbergh

Jason Mraz on MySpace Secret Shows Tonight @ 8pm

MySpace Secret Shows is pleased to announce that Jason Mraz, one of modern music’s most inventive and compelling live performers, will play a stripped down set in Hartford, CT at Webster Underground on Tuesday, July 15 at 8 PM.

Mraz will be accompanied by percussionist/vocalist Toca Rivera. During a break from his worldwide tour in support of his latest album, We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things., Mraz will perform a very intimate show at the 200-capacity Webster Underground. The Secret Show is a free, exclusive performance for the MySpace community.

PCM loves Jason Mraz and his new album. His duet with Colbie Caillet is an awesome one to check out. You can also have a listen to his newest single, "I'm Yours," below, too!