The producers of American Idol offer their official reaction to GayStripperGate, in which it was revealed that contestant David Hernandez used to make a living at Phoenix-area men's burlesque Dick's Cabaret (Where Even the Dicks Give You Jazz Hands!™). From a TVGuide.com interview with Idol producer Ken Warwick:

TVGuide.com: Will the revelations about David's stripper past have any impact on whether he stays on the show?

Ken Warwick: No, it won't make any difference. The truth is, we're never judgmental about what people do to earn a living. They've got to put food in people's mouths. We've had strippers on the show before. Nikki McKibbon was one in [Season] 1. 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. [...]

TVGuide.com: Have you seen him since the news broke?
Warwick: I haven't actually seen him today but I'm not worried about it. The thing is, at the end, the public will make the decision anyway. If there's a stretch of the public that thinks, "Oh, dear, he was a male stripper, so I'm not going to vote for him," then that's the luck of the draw. If the public doesn't like him, then they'll get rid of him.

The easygoing Warwick then threw back his head with a laugh, offering, "Let me put it to you another way: Even if turned out that this guy was the starring attraction in a series of leather-themed bukake movies and instructional fisting videos, he still doesn't have a shot in hell of winning. Haven't you been watching? That David Archuleta kid has this thing all sewn up, and the scariest thing in his closet is an old Barney doll! So quit worrying your little head off about who or what Hernandez has done for money in public with no pants on. It's just needless stress, silly!" before cutting the interview short for that afternoon's dress rehearsal.

• Idol Producer: David H.'s Stripper Past "Won't Make Any Difference" [TVGuide.com]