AMERICAN Idol producer Nigel Lythgoe has rebuffed rumours that the show rigs results in order to spark controversy and thereby boost the ratings. The rumours were rekindled last week after the elimination of Pia Toscano, who had been regarded by Las Vegas oddsmakers as the favourite in this seasons competition. Lythgoe said last week that he had been watching the weekly voting results and knew all along that Toscano was no frontrunner. And New York Post quotes him as saying, There are always conspiracy theories, but you know we are so careful. All the voting, he said, is tabulated by AT&T. Contactmusic