May 31, 2009
ABC, Inc.
Attn: ABC/BBC Television Network Production Editorial Staff
500 S. Buena Vista Street
Burbank, CA 91521-4551
(818) 460-7477
To the Editors of the ABC Television Network:
First of all, I would like to thank you ABC/BBC for entertaining us with one of the most popular television shows in America - Dancing With The Stars. Season 8 was absolutely the best and I am sure it attracted many more thousands of fans to the show. However, as an administrator of a fan website supporting your show, I am writing you this letter on behalf of thousands of disgruntled fans who would like an answer.
Even though our site is absolutely in no way personally affiliated with any dancer or professional on your show (it was created for our own pleasure and interest) I have been encouraged by several voters to be the voice in expressing our honest opinion about an upsetting voting experience and the results of this past season. Although we enjoy the opportunity to vote and participate, unfortunately during the Finals of Season 8 our experience was unsatisfactory and quite frustrating. A vast number of people who tried to vote reported to have trouble getting through due to busy phone lines or the ABC online voting system freezing up. I know for a fact that a few hundred members from our website never finished all of their phone-in votes, me included, and so thousands of votes were not tabulated. Had the show not mentioned "the <1% difference between the top two dancers" then yes, maybe it would not have come down to such discouraged and displeased fans. Yet, the fact remains that, to us because we are such passionate fans of your show, those votes that did not register may have made that slight difference and in the end we may not have felt so cheated. We would like to request that ABC take responsibility for their inadequate telephone and on-line voting systems and provide an explanation and plan of action to the fans, as a result of such a high percentage of votes not registering, given the high volume of voters, particularly in the Finals.
Please, keep in mind, we are friendly fans of your show and our goal is not to change the result, have a rematch or even a recount. At this point we just would like ABC to justify all of our hard work and countless votes and hopefully prevent this from happening again. It is a shame that you have created such a popular, relatable show and now so many people have expressed their desire to discontinue watching because of their negative experiences. It would be easy to just let this go and hope for the best next season, but given the tight (<1%) difference and emails from thousands of friends and fans who feel they have been shortchanged after voting diligently, week by week on-line and from multiple phone lines, it is hard to ignore. I would hope, as professionals, you would feel the same.
As loyal fans of DWTS all we ask is for your response and please acknowledge our request.
Sincerely,
Mindy Limon
1336 Park St. #212
Alameda, CA 94501
mindylimon@yahoo.com
