Featured posts, The Voice

West Coast viewers blast The Voice, and rightfully so

11

Lauren Duski and Carson Daly on The Voice Season 12

Carson Daly was all smiles after a performance by Lauren Duski on The Voice Monday night. But West Coast viewers weren’t amused by the mess his show made of its live playoff format. (NBC Photo)

The Voice kicked off its live shows Monday night with a format more deserving of a Razzie than an Emmy.

As contestants sang their hearts out in hopes of landing a spot in the Season 12 finals, their fate was being decided by live voting that began before all the performances were completed.

And in one of the show’s silliest moves ever, viewers in the Mountain and West Coast times zones were being urged on Twitter to vote while the performances were occurring in the East Coast.

In other words, they were being encouraged to vote without seeing a single performance.

By the time the West Coast feed of the show aired, voting was already completed; the results had already been announced back East.

West Coast viewers were understandably not amused and took to Twitter to voice their disgust over The Voice’s live playoff format.

Here’s just a sampling I collected in a matter of five minutes.

Christian Richards @cimcbride2014

@TheVoice the west coast really hates being left out of your voting process.

I find not being able to vote is really putting a damper on my enjoyment.

Every time they show “voting is closed”, it’s a slap in the West Coast’s collective face. @TheVoice

[email protected]‏ @kpowersfamilya1

@CarsonDaly WTH shutting out the West Coast from voting ? @TheVoice

Demntle Fox @DementleFox

.@blakeshelton #VoicePlayoffs I guess the West Coast votes do not matter anymore. #sadface @TheVoice #TheVoice

Thomas @tfelliott

@aliciakeys @adamlevine @blakeshelton @gwenstefani please beg them to let more then the east coast vote! Let our voice be heard #TheVoice

Kt_sorenson @kt_sorensen

Why can’t the west coast vote?? SO not cool!! This was the one show that was fair.. oh well #WestCoastVotesCountToo #TheVoice

Linda Hansen @lshansen757

@NBCTheVoice you need to change the way to do voting! You want people to vote yet eliminate an entire time zone! Shame one you #thevoice

G-Men4EVER @ridenslide65

So apparently @NBC only gives a sh*t about peeps on the East Coast. You live out West? Screw you. No vote for you #TheVoice @NBCTheVoice

K @Malibu204

#thevoice boycott the show until the west coast vote counts

Brian Hardle @chief5042

#TheVoice. Basically only the East coast gets to vote the live shows. Not fair especially when the show is produced on the West coast.

Andre Fortin @mt2la

I just stopped recording #TheVoice halfway through and deleted it from my DVR. No more unless they include Westcoast to vote.

Julz @julzz9512_julie

@CarsonDaly west coast doesn’t get to vote!! Please stop saying America. America is not just the east coast. #TheVoice

SinCityDiva @SinCityDiva

@FCC the @NBCTheVoice lied! There was no real time voting for the west coast. Only east coast got to vote #TheVoice #thevoiceplayoffs

Nick Donaldson‏ @psyclopz

So no voting at all on #TheVoice for any of us on the west coast? So lame. #TheVoiceEastCoastBias is total bull.

Robyn Bruns‏ @Redletterevent

#TheVoice this live voting that does not allow west coast participation is complete crap why doesn’t my vote matter?

Holly Costello‏ @hdcostello12

#TheVoice you are NOT real time voting. Voting is only for east coast. West coast doesn’t count. Stupid. #shownotfair

In my opinion, @Malibu204 has the right idea. It would serve The Voice right if every fan on the West Coast found something else to watch on Monday and Tuesday nights for the rest of the spring.

Problem is, it’s not only the viewers who get cheated by this process. How about the contestants who have most of their fan base on the West Coast?

You think there isn’t a reason a West Coast singer has never won an instant save on The Voice?

Might it have something to do with the fact that the instant save is also determined on East Coast time, long before the West Coast starts watching the show let alone knows who’s in danger of elimination?

And if The Voice is really about finding the best voice, what sense does it make to have voting start before everyone has performed? Or to encourage half the nation to vote without seeing a single performance?

At that point you’re not hosting a singing competition, Carson Daly. You’re hosting a popularity contest.

You might as well forget the live playoff performances, have the contestants line up on stage, smile for the camera and let the voting begin.

Now really, didn’t the old format of beginning voting at the end of the show and keeping it open until noon the next day so everyone could participate make more sense?

Sure seems so to me.

And I bet viewers on the West Coast would agree.

Related Posts

11 Comments

  1. JOYCE April 18, 2017 at 1:26 am - 

    SO WEST COAST CAN’T VOTE, RIGHT?

    • Mark Franklin April 20, 2017 at 12:51 am - 

      You can vote as long as you cast the votes while the voting is taking place on the East Coast, in other words 5 to 7 p.m. Pacific Time. But you have to follow along on Twitter or the Voice app to know which team for vote for when. And you have to vote without seeing any of the performances, which is another ridiculous part of this format.

  2. Francis clark April 18, 2017 at 12:55 pm - 

    We need to be able to vote on the west coast. I love the show and feel that are vote and are voice should be counted and our opinion respected. Hey NBC show us some love!

  3. Francisco clark April 18, 2017 at 12:57 pm - 

    We need to be able to vote on the west coast. I love the show and feel that are vote and are voice should be counted and our opinion respected. Hey NBC show us some love!

  4. Michelle April 18, 2017 at 11:39 pm - 

    Infuriating that the west coast vote doesn’t matter!

  5. enriquejohnson April 19, 2017 at 12:02 am - 

    hate that we dont get share our views on the contestants,SAD for the fans, and also for the show change it next season.PLEASE

  6. loretta April 19, 2017 at 12:06 am - 

    what was the point of watching the show and picking a team if we can’t even vote… I live in California were the show is being taped…. and my vote doesn’t even matter … NBC made a huge mistake by excluding our votes…they will lose a lot of viewers after this…. and the WINNER this season is NOT THE TRUE WINNER !!!

  7. TiredofTripe April 19, 2017 at 9:50 am - 

    I can’t imagine what it must be like for “Voice” viewers who don’t live on the East Coast.

    Especially those people who have seen their favorite contestants get eliminated the last couple of shows.

    Also, not everyone has the technical knowledge to use Twitter or the “Voice” app.

    “The Voice” is a ripoff.

    BTW, it’s spelled “Razzie.”

  8. Chuck May 1, 2017 at 9:12 pm - 

    How can they say:
    America has voted” ??

  9. Pamela May 3, 2017 at 6:31 pm - 

    At least American Idol was Fair. I miss them.

    • TiredofTripe May 12, 2017 at 12:07 pm - 

      Sorry I’m late to reply to this post.

      Pamela-You think “Idol” was fair?!

      Tell that to Angela Peel, Kimberley Kelsey, Lisa Leuschner, Suzy Vulaca, Ayla Brown, Gedeon McKinney, AJ Tabaldo, Sabrina Sloan, Asia’h Epperson, Alexandrea Lushington, Ricky Braddy, Kristen McNamara, Mishavonna Henson, Felicia Barton, Ju’Not Joyner, Jesse Langseth, Lilly Scott, Katelyn Epperly, Alex Lambert, Lauren Turner, Kendra Chantelle, Creighton Fraker, Vincent Powell, Nick Boddington, and Savion Wright.

      Look them up.