Antonella Barba was a pretty face with an okay voice, destined to become a sure afterthought after her imminent departure from American Idol.  However, a friend with a vendetta decided to post some scantily-clad photos of Barba on the internet and, overnight, Antonella Barba was a household name.

It began with photos of Barba in various states of undress (nothing explicit).  Barba, if I may so myself, it a great-looking girl and you couldn't hit up any gossip blogs with seeing her photos plastered everywhere.  The initial photos weren't incriinating, but the real controversy began when more pictures surfaced, this time of Barba posing in a wet t-shirt in the Veteran's War Memorial fountain in Washinton, D.C.  There was outrage from countless fans, and calls for her disqualification abounded.

She wasn't given the old heave-ho by Idol producers, and they were actually quite sympathetic to her plight.  These pictures were clearly meant to be private, and the humiliation involved was certainly punishment enough.  Briefly, some pornographic pictures surfaced that were purported to be of Barba, but those turned out to be of a look-a-like porn actress.

Some people saw the fact that Barba wasn't disqualified as a clear double-standard, seeing that they had booted Frenchie Davis from the competition a few years back after nude photos of her had surfaced.  Some Davis supporters attempted to make it a racial issue, but it all became moot when Barba was eliminated. 



-Oscar Dahl, BuddyTV Senior Writer

(Image Courtesy of The National Ledger)