The pros and cons of Ellen DeGeneres' 'Idol' gig
...A Good Idea
Hear that? It's the sound of no one talking about Paula Abdul anymore.
Strictly from a public relations standpoint, the hiring of Ellen
DeGeneres has been an unqualified success in that it has shifted the
discussion from what American Idol is losing next season to what it's
gaining. And it is gaining something pretty great in Ellen, a beloved
entertainer who is uniquely qualified to sit among the Idol judges.
Sure, Simon, Randy, and Kara may boast traditional music smarts, but
Ellen is a true-blue fan of the genre. She, in essence, is the voice of
the record-downloading public, and it's high time that person was
represented on the panel. The fact that this particular fan can also
fill the much-needed nurturing, motherly void — without all of her
predecessor's linguistic liabilities — is just icing on the cake. Oh, and
did I mention that she's also pretty darn funny? As I see it, there are
no losers here. Unless you count Abdul, who has to be kicking herself
(or her management) right about now. —Michael Ausiello
...A Bad Idea
Hiring Ellen DeGeneres as American Idol's permanent fourth judge is like
adding a cup of sugar to a recipe that needed a liberal sprinkling of
Tabasco. As her guest-judging stint on So You Think You Can Dance in
July taught us, the daytime host is less interested in providing
critical feedback than in trying out variations on the ''You're great,
you're great, and you're great, and here's a punchline!'' theme. Which
means that when Idol's live-performance shows kick off next February,
audiences will be blithely fast-forwarding through three out of four
judges' comments — sorry, Randy and Kara! — a bad portent for the long-term
health of TV's No. 1 show. Worse still, Idol's inexplicable commitment
to a four-judge format means that once again, the show will have less
airtime to devote to its next crop of Kris Allens and Adam Lamberts.
After eight seasons, is it possible the producers still don't understand
the basic formula that keeps Idol fans coming back by the tens of
millions? A single ''Heartless'' or ''Mad World'' is worth 1,000 ''wacky''
exchanges at the judges' table. —Michael Slezak
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