American Idol XIII: Recovering from Last Year’s Disaster, and More

The media coverage is ramping up for the new season of American Idol, which premieres on January 15. Here are the best bits from around the web.

The New York Times has a lengthy article that included quotes from FOX chief, Kevin Reilly and David Hill, who took the place of reality chief, Mike Darnell, when he left the network in June.

The network bemoans the fact that the very public feud between judges Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj chased away the core Idol fans:

The show’s central appeal, that it pulled in viewers from every generation, had also clearly eroded: The median viewer age reached 51.2, up four years in only two seasons.

Age is much on the mind of the executives in charge of the remodeling. Mr. Hill recalled watching the first seasons with multiple generations in his home. “Then it changed, and it wasn’t that anymore,” he said. The aim now is to make it a “season of rediscovery” that leads back to all-family viewing. “If you do it well, and you strike that emotional-response chord with the audience, anything’s possible,” he said.

But what exactly is possible with a fading hit in its 13th year? “As it continues to get older, you just kind of want it to age gracefully,” Mr. Reilly said. He noted that other aging reality shows like “Survivor” and “The Bachelor” had seen their ratings erode and managed to “flatten out to a level of audience that kind of sustains.”

“Our goal is to do a good job and keep millions of core fans who love ‘Idol,’ just keep them engaged and sort of flatten it out,” he said.

That doesn’t sound much like the cultural phenomenon the show once was. But Mr. Reilly said the time had come for realism. “We’ll be down again this season, just naturally because of the marketplace,” he said. “In a reasonable decline, I will be thrilled. Will ‘Idol” continue to be the centerpiece, the tent pole, of the network? Will it be on as many hours as it has been in the past?

“Perhaps not. We’ll see where we are after this season. I just want it to be a vibrant, alive franchise that people love — for as long as it can go.”

Kevin Reilly puts at least some of the blame for last year’s disastrous season on the feud. And David Hill subtly shades last year’s talent:

The Fox executives acknowledged the impact of the competition, from “The Voice,” a true hit for NBC, and Fox’s own “X Factor,” which has generated ever-weaker ratings while apparently diluting interest in “Idol.” But they did not shrink from assigning principal blame for the “Idol” ratings plunge last season to on-air enmity between two of the judges, Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj, which sent viewers packing.

Mr. Reilly decried the “antics going on” last season. “When it became all about the drama about the judges, that was really out of whack,” he said.

Mr. Hill said: “There are so many positive qualities about this show, why would you want conflict there at all — question mark, question mark, question mark. The show can never be about the judges.”

But Mr. Hill, who had an important role in the judges’ selection, said the emphasis would return to the contestants, their talent and their emotions. (Mr. Reilly conceded that the overall weakness of the competition was an issue last season. “Frankly, we didn’t find the contestant who overshadowed the judges’ story,” he said. “Had we exploded a talent or two, I think that would have made a difference.”)

The joke contestants will be sharply curtailed. I can attest to this. I’ve seen a preview of the two-hour premiere:

Then there’s the infamous sequences of wretched or hilariously bad performances: Those will be “exponentially less to almost nonexistent,” Mr. Urban said. He, Ms. Lopez and Mr. Connick all spoke out against the practice, with Mr. Connick the sharpest, saying he had told several hopelessly poor contestants: “This is a waste of time. You just need to stop.”

From Ford Magazine, Media writer, Brad Adgate, predicts Idol will drop further, but not as significantly as last season:

Despite a significant drop in audience delivery, American Idol still commands one of the highest advertising rates on television and thousands of young contestants will continue to audition to show. As viewers have more options than ever before and American Idol enters its 13th season, viewer fatigue and a ratings fall-off are to be expected. For its thirteenth season expect American Idol’s audience delivery to decline further however, the ratings decline will not be as great as in the previous two seasons. In 2014 American Idol should rank among ten highest programs in Adults 18-49, an extraordinarily accomplishment after all these years.

And, despite the recent media storm (or maybe because of it) around controversial remarks from family patriarch, Phil Robertson, the show will likely beat the American Idol premiere in the ratings when  go head to head  they both air on Wednesday:

The show returns the same night as the 13th-season premiere of Fox’s American Idol, which returns popular judge Jennifer Lopez to its panel (along with Keith Urban and newcomer Harry Connick Jr.). The A&E docuseries might seem an unlikely foil for TV’s former champion, but Dynasty topped Idol by 34 percent in the 18-to-49 demographic when they most recently aired on the same night in April 2012. Even Idol’s season finale that May didn’t rise to Dynasty’s highs, and a few months later Dynasty’s fourth season opened to a network-best 11.8 million viewers and averaged 9.4 million during its run — including a whopping 5.1 million in the 18-to-49 demo. Some believe the recent Robertson headlines could boost the show, at least temporarily.

“Staying in the press tends to extend the shelf life of reality series,” says Sam Armando, senior vp and director of strategic intelligence at media-buying firm SMGx. “I’m not convinced it’s going to miss a beat at all, and few will be surprised if the ratings come back higher.”

Via New York Times, Forbes,The Hollywood Reporter

About mj santilli 34830 Articles
Founder and editor of mjsbigblog.com, home of the awesomest fan community on the net. I love cheesy singing shows of all kinds, whether reality or scripted. I adore American Idol, but also love The Voice, Glee, X Factor and more!