Former stripper allowed to stay on "Idol"

Former stripper allowed to stay on "Idol"
LOS ANGELES - "American Idol" producers are shrugging off the latest sex scandal to hit the top-rated U.S. television show, saying contestant David Hernandez can stay in the competition despite his past as a stripper.
"We've had strippers on the show before," executive producer Ken Warwick was quoted on Tuesday as telling the Web site TVGuide.com. "We're never judgmental about people who do things like that.
"If it were some sort of heavy porn, then maybe we'd have to take action. But certainly not on this."
Warwick's comments came as media reports surfaced that Hernandez, 24, had worked as an adult entertainer at a Phoenix strip club where he appeared nude and performed lap dances for a mostly male clientele.
The Fox network, which broadcasts "Idol," declined to comment on the matter. But sources close to the show said Hernandez would remain in the competition until, or unless, he gets voted off by fans.
He was one of eight male contestants to perform on Tuesday's broadcast, two days before the current assembly of 16 semi-finalists is winnowed to 12. He advanced to the current round last week after winning glowing praise from all three judges with his performance of "Papa Was a Rolling Stone."