'Idol' season kicks off in Philadelphia and Dallas

Are the chanteuses of Charleston more intriguing than the singers of San Diego? Are the oddballs of Omaha freakier than the maniacs of Miami?

If you suspect that musical freaks and geeks vary by region, you can now set your viewing schedule accordingly.

FOX announced on Monday (Jan. 7) that next Tuesday's two-hour premiere of American Idol will showcase the best and worst of Philadelphia, while the next night's two-hour episode will show winners and losers from Dallas.

Does that mean that Philly and Dallas had the season's finest and sorriest contestants? Were those the cities the Idol editors were able to cut together first? Or did FOX just want to showcase a good ol' fashioned NFC East rivalry?

In all likelihood, FOX just saw the advantage of kicking off the show's seventh season with episodes shot in the season's largest audition media markets.

The exact broadcast dates for the San Diego, Omaha, Atlanta, Charleston and Miami auditions have yet to be announced.

Traditionally, of course, American Idol has had more success with its auditions in Southern cities, while Texas locations have generally been disappointing.

However, it's best not to put too much too much weight behind the apparent quality of a city's auditions. After last season's premiere, the buzz on the Internet was about the total absence of talent in Seattle. Five months later we saw that both of the season's finalists -- Jordin Sparks and Blake Lewis -- came out of the rainy city.

Nobody, as we say, knows anything.

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