‘American Idol’ Is Being Dragged For Giving Kellyanne Conway A Chance To Portray Herself As A Doting Mother In The Wake Of Abuse Allegations

One would be hard pressed for anyone to imagine Kellyanne Conway as anything but a nightmare stage mom, if given the chance. And she’s definitely getting that chance because American Idol allowed her to play the dutiful (but also nightmarish) stage mom while daughter Claudia made her debut on the reality competition show (in a pre-recorded audition clip that was reportedly filmed in November).

That Idol would include Kellyanne on the finished broadcast is a particularly shocking development following several months of troubling incidents regarding Kellyanne and her 16-year-old daughter. Last August, Claudia announced that she would be seeking emancipation from her parents (her father is George Conway, who co-founded The Lincoln Project). Claudia also stated at the time that she would do so “because of years of childhood trauma and abuse.” The situation appeared to intensify this January when TMZ reported that law enforcement had carried out a welfare check after Claudia “secretly recorded and posted a video showing her mom screaming and swearing at her” on TikTok. Most recently, Kellyanne was accused of posting a topless photo of her daughter on Twitter. And yet, Idol aired Kellyanne’s “surprise” appearance, in which she expressed encouragement for Claudia.

Watching Kellyanne dance in the above clip is really something, but it gets worse. Her voice at the end of the next clip (“Claudiaaaaaaaaaa!”) sounds, to be perfectly fair, much like it belongs in a horror movie or maybe even a certain Faye Dunaway picture.

Then there was this palpable moment where Katy Perry asks, “Are you okay?” and Claudia answers, “No, but yes.”

The backlash to Kellyanne’s airtime was swift and fierce and included broadcast journalist Soledad O’Brien’s judgment: “Good work by American Idol in their efforts to rehab the reputation of horrible human.”

Others referred to the display from Kellyanne and Idol as “disgusting” and very much a double standard.

Does this mean we’ll see “the QAnon shaman as the next Bachelor” anytime soon? Don’t rule it out.