Fox is defending itself against claims that corporate sponsor AT&T unfairly swayed the show’s outcome by providing Kris Allen fans with free “power texts.”

According to The New York Times, AT&T provided phones for free text-messaging services at two Allen parties in Arkansas on the night of the finals. Citing sources, The Times reports that AT&T reps showed party-goers how to “power text” — cast 10 votes at the touch of a button — which violates show rules.

No similar efforts appear to have been made to provide free texting services to Adam Lambert fans, who have complained that the competition’s voting was rigged.

On Wednesday, Fox, Idol producers 19 Entertainment and FremantleMedia denied the claims in a statement:

“Fox and the producers of American Idol are absolutely certain that the results of this competition are fair, accurate and verified. Kris Allen is, without a doubt, the American Idol. We have an independent third-party monitoring procedure in place to ensure the integrity of the voting process. In no way did any individuals unfairly influence the outcome of the competition.”

AT&T also defended itself in a separate statement:

“Last week, countless parties were held in homes, bars, and other public places across America to watch the American Idol finale. In Arkansas, a few local AT&T employees were invited to attend two local watch parties organized by the community. Caught up in the enthusiasm of rooting for their hometown contestant, they brought a small number of demo phones with them and provided texting tutorials to those who were interested.

“Going forward,” the AT&T statement concluded, “we will make sure our employees understand our sponsorship celebrates the competition, not individual contestants. That said, it’s quite a leap to suggest that a few individuals could have impacted the final results.”

Allen and Lambert’s rep has no comment.

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Kris won!! Yay team!

Kris Allen can’t believe he won American Idol.

“I feel tired, but I feel great,” the 23-year-old Arkansas native told reporters after last night’s show. “I’m exhausted, but I’m shocked — I’m really shocked.”

Allen says he still “feels that” Adam Lambert should have taken the title “because he deserves it just as much as I do.

“He’s an amazing, amazing performer, a gifted, gifted guy and really just an amazing guy. And it was fun doing this with him. It really was.”

After winning the show, Allen’s wife, Katy, ran up and hugged him.

“She didn’t say anything, we just hugged each other. We just felt like we needed that,” Allen tells Us. “[Now] this is all over with…we can be married again.

But Katy won’t be joining him on tour, even though she was in the audience each week on Idol.

“She doesn’t want to follow me around, so she’s going to come for a couple of shows for sure, but she going to have her own life for the summer. But we’ll be keeping in touch a lot,” Allen says.

Lambert, the runner-up, tells Us he “kind of had a feeling” Allen would win when he was standing on stage.

“There was a second where I guess I, like, had to prepare myself for either possibility, and I was like, ‘I think it might be Kris,’” the 27-year-old San Diego native tells Us.

Even though he didn’t win, he says he had no regrets.

“I felt really satisfied with [Tuesday] night’s show,” he tells Us.

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Just curious where you all stand.  I watched last night’s American Idol, and I totally think Kris Allen should win. I love him! I’m not saying that Adam Lambert isn’t talented – he totally is…..but Kris Allen is remarkable! His songs actually move me, make me feel something! I think Kris should win, but hey – that’s me.  What do you think?

PS: I don’t think that Adam Lambert needs American Idol. He will go on and have an amazing career, either way!