Another new week for “American Idol;” another new controversy for the No. 1 rated U.S. TV talent contest. And again, the uproar centers on David Archuleta’s dad, Jeff.

Numerous media reports over the weekend said Jeff Archuleta has been told by the show’s producers that he can no longer help David prepare and has been banned from backstage. Fox, the network that airs “Idol,” has declined to comment on those reports.

Media stories speculated that Jeff Archuleta was admonished for insisting his son change the lyrics to “Stand by Me,” which David sang on the May 6 episode. The problem is, when he changed the song to add a verse from Sean Kingston’s “Beautiful Girls,” it cost the show’s producers more money because they must pay for music rights when contestants sing songs. In effect, the producers had to pay for two songs, “Stand by Me” and “Beautiful Girls,” when David sang only one.

Various reports say that Jeff Archuleta had been told David could not use the verse from “Beautiful Girls,” but he told his son to go ahead, anyway. None of those reports could be confirmed. 

Still, Jeff has been in hot water before for apparently choosing David’s songs, and there was some speculation that Jeff drove his son so hard, he made David cry. Last month in Us Weekly magazine, Jeff Archuleta said accusations he was an overbearing “stage dad” were simply wrong. “There was absolutely no truth in any of the stories about me yelling at David, making him cry, or withholding water from him. That was crazy!,” Jeff Archuleta told the magazine.

The media reports about Jeff Archuleta, in some cases, have been brutal.

Celebrity web site TMZ.com has said that the father of “American Idol” contestant David Archuleta has screamed at his son and brought him to tears in rehearsals while driving him to perform ever better on the top-rated TV talent show.

“Idol” judge Simon Cowell seemed to question Archuleta’s choice of a Beatles song, “We Can Work It Out,” that the 17-year-old messed up on the show back in March, implying that it might have been Jeff who chose the song for his son.

But Jeff Archuleta finally spoke out to hush his critics on Wednesday in an interview with celebrity magazine Us, calling accusations that he was an overbearing, hyper-competitve “stage dad” simply crazy.

“I’m definitely involved with my son, and I encourage him, but I think that’s a lot different from forcing and threatening and all that stuff. There was absolutely no truth in any of the stories about me yelling at David, making him cry, or withholding water from him. That was crazy!” Jeff Archuleta told the magazine.

Jeff also called his son “a reluctant singer,” saying that when David was young, the boy could not understand why anyone wanted to hear him sing. Then Jeff added, “I think (David) was blessed with a musical ear that was far beyond his years.”

And on that last quote, Jeff is probably right. The young singer has been a clear frontrunner in the race to crown the next “American Idol” this season.

The full interview can be read at Usmagazine.com.