One hypothesis I have is that the idol machinery in Korea and Japan has more in common with how athletes are developed in the U.S. than with how one becomes a pop musician here. And one analogy might be that, though the athletes are willing, enthusiastic participants, most will never make it big, and will get exploited terribly (at least the ones in the major spectator sports like football and basketball), though of course there are counterarguments, that the participation in sports is good in itself, teaches teamwork and application, and that the scholarships etc. help the athletes attain an education, if they want one.

I love American football, but I watch with the uneasy sense that many of the people who play the game are getting permanently hurt by it.