Apples to Apples Please!

OK, this is a bit stale now, but can bloggers (even smart ones) and the MSM alike please stop parroting Ryan Seacrest in telling us that there were more votes cast in the American Idol finale than any U.S. president has ever received? Comparing total votes cast to the number of votes for a single candidate is not the same. On American Idol, you can vote multiple times, from the comfort of your home, and you don't have to be 18. Oh, and convicts and non-citizens can vote too. Now I despair over the state of American Democracy just as much as the next guy, but American Idol isn't the reason.