Batson's Blog

American Idol producers Nigel Ythgoe and Ken Warwick have been fired after season 12 of the hit TV show. The show has been in major makeover mode ever since it began dipping in the ratings, facing new found competition from NBC's The Voice . So far American Idol got rid of two producers and lost three members of the judging panel: Nicki Minaj, Mariah Carey and Randy Jackson. They can give the show a new look, introduce new rules into the competition and get an entirely new staff, but the problem they are facing is one a lot of other reality TV shows face as well: how far do you go in revamping the show?

There were rumblings that Nicki Minaj may not be back for another season of American Idol, but it turns out that AI original, Randy Jackson, won't be returning next season . As American Idol struggles to stay relevant and remain on top of the ratings battle, they've pretty much resorted to musical chairs with their judges. First Paula ABdul was out. Then Kara Dioguardi and Ellen DeGeneres were in. Then Ellen was out. Then Kara was out. Then Simon was out while J'Lo and Steven Tyler were in. After a very boring season with Lopez and Tyler as judges, they switched it up, signing on the level-headed Keith Urban along with the feisty Nicki Minaj and "the Diva" Mariah Carey. That's a lot of switching around. With so many judges swapping spots, leaving and coming on board, it kind of takes the attention away from the aspiring singers. This is supposed to be the search for the next big music superstar -- so why so much focus on the judges? If Minaj en...