American Idol's Tim Urban saddened by Vote for the Worst endorsement

The love affair between ousted "American Idol" contestant Tim Urban and website Vote for the Worst is one-sided.

"I'm actually kind of sad that I was on that website," Urban told reporters Thursday, adding he wasn't excited about the VFTW endorsement.

Vote for the Worst, which annually encourages viewers to back its pick for the least promising "Idol" contestant, supported Urban since the competition's early stages.

Urban also told reporters he attributes his constant smile to his "really solid grounding." He named the judges' feedback for his Elivis night performance among his "Idol" high points

As for his shirtless photo that surfaced online during the competition, Urban said the photo had a mixed effect on his popularity. But he added, "I think it probably helped more than it hurt."

I live-tweeted Urban's conference call. Read it by clicking on the link that accompanies this page.

Urban, who performed a mediocre rendition of the Goo Goo Dolls' "Better Days" this week, was perhaps the most divisive contestant during the top 12 stage of the competition.

He advanced to semifinals only after "Idol" hopeful Chris Golightly was disqualified.

In Urban's absence, Vote for the Worst is backing Siobhan Magnus.

This story was originally published April 22, 2010 at 3:19 PM with the headline "American Idol's Tim Urban saddened by Vote for the Worst endorsement."