American Idol: Who Are These People?

Here is a photo of the current contestants from 'American Idol'. If you're a fan of the show, you now know that there are only four contestants left, as Paris was shown the door last night, but my post isn't about that (although it did start out to be). I began searching images of American Idol contestants and had to go through pages of images before I came to the photo you see here. It's hard to believe that so many contestants have gone before, but most of the people I saw photos of, have disappeared into thin air. With the exception of those two beauties from the second season who now host their own shown about the show, on some channel I don't even get, most of the other contestants have left the radar. I used to think that this show gave everyone a break, but maybe I was wrong in my thinking since most of these people probably hit a brick wall after a while. So how valid is this show in terms of making careers happen? Now I'm beginning to believe maybe not so much. With the exception of Kelly Clarkson and Clay Aiken (who is having his own troubles right now because of mixed messages regarding his image), I can't really think of anyone else I've seen stay in the public view. Nevertheless, this show remains extremely popular as evidenced by the ratings, the voting (which out numbers presidential elections) and the audience members, which often holds movie and television stars, looking to be seen. Where as other reality shows may come and go (with the exception of 'Survivor' and 'Amazing Race'), it looks like AI is here to stay!