William Hung: Saw the clip of his American Idol appearance last night. A few points.

First, Ryan Seacrest proved, in case any skeptics remained, that the people who make the show don't get it. While he did make the scripted comment, "Just because you didn't win doesn't make you a loser," he also quipped, "Does American Idol change your life or what?"

How arrogant of them to take credit for "creating" him. They brought the kid on in an early episode to be a cheap laugh. Give the public a few giggles at his expense.

However, he proved far more popular than their show.

Now, rather than his story ending as scripted, with their smugly booting him off as an absolutely worthless performer, they've had to go back to him, tail between their legs, because he'd gotten bigger than them, and they needed him to raise themselves up.

But the greatest display of network ignorance was the dancing cheerleaders and "hype" of his schtick. Mystified at the cause for his appeal, they fall back on all the "known" stuff, the things the TV executive handbooks say makes people stay tuned.

The kid's appeal is his sincerity. He's the genuine article, and we feel that with every awkward gyration and mispronounced line. He's proud of who he is, and the combination of confidence, sincerity, and incredible optimism have won us all over.

But that's a language network brass doesn't speak. So bring on the dancing girls.

The solo performance of "Can You Feel The Love Tonight" was far more entertaining than the hyped-up dance number.

Even better was the "unseen footage" of him doing Phil Collins' "You'll Be In My Heart" from Disney's Tarzan with no accompaniment.

I'm enjoying his 15 minutes far more than any celeb I've seen come around in a while.