Whoopi Goldberg Says ‘American Idol’ Was the “Beginning of the Downfall of Society”

Whoopi Goldberg is sharing her thoughts on American Idol — and she isn’t too keen on its impact on society.

While discussing Netflix’s Anna Nicole Smith: You Don’t Know Me documentary on a recent episode of The View, the co-host brought up the singing competition show and said the early seasons put a spotlight on drama, judgment and criticism.

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“I think that we, as a society, love to watch stuff to judge folks. I’ve always thought that the beginning of the downfall of society was with, what’s the name of that show?” Goldberg said before show producer Brian Teta chimed in off camera, saying, “ABC’s American Idol?”

Goldberg quickly clarified that American Idol “was not always on ABC,” after Teta pointed out that The View and the reality show share the same network.

“Once we gave people the ability to judge other people, I think we ran amok with it, and it’s gone out of control,” The Color Purple actress said. “They invited the public to decide who that person was, and I feel once we did that, it began us in a cycle which we have not [escaped].”

Goldberg also explained that she was referring to American Idol when it ran on Fox from 2002 to 2016 and said that “it’s a very different show” now, with new judges. She added that she has told ABC, “it had nothing to do with them.”

Earlier during the discussion, the EGOT winner also brought up other popular reality television shows, saying, “People like to be judgy.”

She continued, “You have Basketball Wives, you have the Housewives of whatever, all the Bravo shows, they give you the impression that you’re doing something wrong because you’re living your life. People watch these shows because they make them feel better.”

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