In a Tuesday press-conference call, executive producer Ken Warwick offered his thoughts on how supposed suck-ass Sanjaya has endured American Idol to date.

“He’s a good-looking kid, and young girls love good-looking kids; he’s not as bad a singer as everybody makes him out to be; and part of this business is your communication with your audience, and he’s certainly got that.” That said, Warwick questions how much longer Sanjaya’s underdog status can save his bacon. “Personally, I don’t expect him to be there in the end, but you never know,” he says. “It’s not up to me, it’s up to the public.”

He also added, “There is very little anybody can do that will affect the vast number of votes that we get.”