Issues
In March 2002, B|W|R pitched a new Fox series based on the wildly popular UK reality show "Pop Idol." Our creativity was not only baked into our proposal but also its delivery—sending it in a pizza box via singing telegram (a rousing parody of "One" from A Chorus Line). What could have wound up another quickly forgotten summer series instead became a triumphant home run, gaining media recognition as a bona fide cultural phenomenon.

Challenge
Three main challenges confronted B|W|R: living up to the huge success of the UK original and the expectations of the client, giving substance to a summer television show (usually a disposable commodity) and, as early media outreach quickly revealed, overcoming the perception of "American Idol" as "another reality TV show."

Insight
While "Star Search" and its ilk gave judges all the power, "American Idol" offered the viewing public a first: the chance to "elect" the next big pop music star themselves through telephone and online voting. This helped distinguish "AI" from the reality TV pack.

Strategy
We chose to create a purposeful gradual build of media exposure to introduce the show, as to not over saturate the market prematurely. The notion was to capitalize on word of mouth, partnered with select television breaks and key print features. We chose this strategy because the "stars" of the show (the top 10 contestants) would not be seen biweekly until Week Five of the series. Initially we sought to create stars (or at least personalities with whom viewers could connect) out of the judges: Paula Abdul, Randy Jackson and especially the acerbic Brit Simon Cowell.

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