Whoopi Goldberg says 'downfall of society' began with American Idol

Whoopi Goldberg has some harsh opinions on American Idol and similar competition shows.

In a recent episode of The View, the 67-year-old television personality discussed the impact of the singing competition imbued with drama, criticism, and judgment.

“I think that we, as a society, love to watch stuff to judge folks. I’ve always thought that the beginning of the downfall of society was with, what’s the name of that show?” Goldberg said before show producer Brian Teta chipped in off camera, saying, “ABC’s American Idol?”

“Once we gave people the ability to judge other people, I think we ran amok with it, and it’s gone out of control,” Goldberg affirmed. “They invited the public to decide who that person was, and I feel once we did that, it began us in a cycle which we have not [escaped].”

The Color Purple actress went on to clarify that she was referring to the rendition of American Idol from the noughties at the time it ran on Fox, noting that “it’s a very different show” now.

The presenter also called out the rampant impact of reality television shows, saying, “People like to be judgy.”

“You have Basketball Wives, you have the Housewives of whatever, all the Bravo shows, they give you the impression that you’re doing something wrong because you’re living your life. People watch these shows because they make them feel better,” she expressed.