Are we going to have a repeat of that situation last year when 23 out of 26 (I think it was) contestants who were selected for the latter stages of X-Factor just happened to have been already personally scouted and invited to audition for the show. The tabloids are going on about people who have already turned professional performing at big music festivals and having previous record contracts, as well as runners up on Cowell's Got Talent global franchises, who are all currently auditioning. Did any humble member of Joe Public ever stand a chance?
Manipulation is a fine art with this show.

Not really. I also see that 4 of the last 24 this year are returning acts. It really is pathetic.

What's so pathetic? For the young ones, a year or two can make a big difference in maturity, vocal and otherwise.

In short, yes, almost definitely. It's simply less risk for the show to have people that already have training and experience and can just fake that they don't to create a 'story' around themselves or drama.

Just look at the ones we've had so far. Caitlyn, Emily and Rebekah have all been on XF before. Honey G is obviously a plant although amusing. Saara Alto was on Finland's The Voice - and I'm sure she just happened to be in town when the auditions for X Factor UK were on, although she doesnt even live in the country? That boy and his whole family flew in from Thailand to audition for a British reality show when he can't sing a note? Give me a break.

'Scouting' doesn't equal manipulation, and isn't necessarily a big deal whatsoever.
Nobody seems to talk about the fact that the Voice has similar numbers of scouted contestants and keeps them quiet, though of course with the anti-Cowell press it's a weekly story.
Of course, it's possible (in some cases probable) there's favouritism towards scouted contestants but not everybody is found by producers. The facts are, if everybody was an absolute amateur, the show would be so dull. Amateurs don't have anywhere as much stage presence for a start. Professionals have played a role since series 1, people are still not over this?
They never deny anyone's past. In fact, many now say, "I've been on other shows" etc. in their intros.

Who are the four

On the Voice US, not only do they not hide the scouting, they emphasize it. During the early seasons, they didn't even have open calls. That only started once the show became popular.

Of the 10 winners so far, 8 were scouted, 2 not.

A lot if not the majority of those that are 'scouted' don't ever get on tv or even to see the judges.

'scouting' often purely consists of a lowly researcher tweeting or emailing someone saying 'Hey, why not audition for us?'. It's just another method of promoting auditions like the TV adverts or whatever.

Yes, many of th people you will see on such shows have been scouted. The thing is, most are either unsigned or are trying again after things didn't work out for them, nd all have been working very hard . So much goes on behind the scenes , and it can take years and repeated attempts before the right time and right place are reached after putting in the effort to get to that point.

Many who are later scouted began by auditioning, having gained experience first performing wherever they could or working the usual circuits .

Most at this point also work a day job , in or out of music related fields. Truth is, the first time you perform in front of thousand of people , or even hundreds, you WILL freak out a bit.Ditto cameras.
Many with great voices but only pub gig/karaoke /open mic experience do not get past the initial screening stages for this reason. It is not entirely out of manipulation, but also, purely because nerves often get the better of inexperienced talent,that most on the show have been around the block, or most of it at least, already.

Actually Saara appears to be a non-scouted contestants, here she is in the big queues back at the open auditions: https://www.instagram.com/p/BJpoPqED...-by=saaraaalto

See - you never know!

What the X-Factors and Got Talents do is bring to public notice performers who may have been trying for years to break out. And yes they do scout and always have. That's how they found Susan Boyle, who had been singing locally for 25 years and probably Paul Potts who had sung in regional opera companies. Don't know about Leona Lewis, although she came out of the Brit school and was a trained singer. Hard to believe she didn't do some local gigs after her day job. For that matter, I doubt if the idea of forming 5 cute boys, mostly with little talent, into the 1-D band was really Simon's spur of the moment idea after they'd all flopped individually. That may well have been baked into the cake before the show began.

But so what. These were all people who would never have gotten anywhere, no matter how hard they'd worked without the magic of TV exposure. They got their chance and ran with it.

I remember reading that Leona had met with Simon and Co before the auditions had begun for her series

I have absolutely no issue with people being invited totake part, or actively scouted, or placed into these shows by their agents etc. , mainly for the reasons pointed out above (professionality etc).
What I object to is the decption; the fact that we are shown the massive queues of people with the suggestion that everyone just shows up and has the same chance of success. For a start, the masses are not queueing up to see Simon & Co, they are auditioning with producers. By the time they get in front of the panel, they already have several rounds of auditions behind them. Which makes it super cruel when you see acts like the hopeless Phillippino boy, because he must have been told he was good enough to see the judges.
The Voice invites their contestants, too, but they have openly stated it in their program.

This is also the point I was trying to get at in my original post, plinkiplonk.

They might just as well come forward and tell us what we all know, and that is that all the acts are hand picked, and they just invite the public along to the auditions to make it all look authentic.

Leona had recorded two albums prior to the X Factor, even had a publishing deal. She had an underground hit with this song,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsnW4kJJfzM

There are tonnes of pre - x factor songs on Youtube, she was hard at work. Here is an interview she did talking and performing some of the songs from the album Twilight.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFA17cfkMzg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FEon--nOHP8

She played lots of gigs and competitions for young talent, so she was definitely making minor waves.

My fave pre - x factor songs.

Breaking Into Pieces
Let Somebody Love You

Now I don't necessarily think that means she was invited, it could have been she just thought what the heck I'll try my luck with the show, but I do like that she wasn't someone who didn't put some graft in.

And what was the story with Shane Ward, I wonder?
Ah, 2005, a year when we young and naive, uncynical and wet behind the ears about such a thing as manipulation on the X-Factor. Heaven forbid!

I think almost everyone has worked at it beforehand. The idea that some totally amateur performer who has never worked on stage before, is going to get to audition on TV is silly when you think about it. Unless it's a total joke act . I agree that the lines of "auditioners" are totally for show.

So lets also agree that Leona (I had no idea she'd been as active as THAT) was certainly scouted. She was doing all that in London for God's sake. How could they have missed a pretty young woman with a great voice, who was already aiming for a professional career.

I personally think it is ridiculous to say that there has been no complete amateurs, there will have been many over the years, but there is no denying that there has also been many who have been invited along.

That's true - it made a difference when Alexandra came back after three years - she won it

The thing I've always suspected is the judges know the vote result before they sit back down and they decide who will let who through and what to do in dead lock off camera. I just can't see Simon letting go of any control over that part of the show.

People want to be fooled. They tune in for the drama and the theatre. They don't tune in for a talent contest. That's the reality I think. It's why Simon has been so successful with these shows. He realised people don't just want a talent show.. they want a story. They want the drama. They want the terrible acts. They want the act that makes the judges cry with the sob story. People lap it up week in week out. You have to hand it to him.. he's a genius for what he's achieved and for the run he's had.

I don't know about Susan Boyle, but Paul Potts wasn't scouted. He has answered queries about this on Youtube. In fact, he wasn't originally available for his audition and BGT refused to reschedule. So doesn't sound like scouted to me. He sang in amateur opera companies, unpaid. Years before BGT.