InfoAnda - Contestants? It's TV talent judges basking in fame, cash |

Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case
Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They

Taiwan denies boycotting Australian film festival
Thursday, August 6, 2009

AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e

Merkel's support dips, regional ally resigns International
Thursday, September 3, 2009

By Sarah Marsh and Noah Barkin

BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German

Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who

Asian markets mixed after Wall Street rally
Wednesday, March 18, 2009

By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an

Ancient Greek temple to cat goddess found in Alexandria | 20 January 2010
EU court adviser backs Google on Net ads | Technology | | 22 September 2009
Expert testimony may boost case against Demjanjuk | | 14 January 2010

Khmer Rouge defendant seeks change of detention | 1 April 2009

Forum Views () Forum Replies ()

Read more with google mobile : Contestants? It's TV talent judges basking in fame, cash |

Edition: U.S. Africa Arabic Argentina Brazil Canada China France Germany India Italy Japan Latin America Mexico Russia Spain United Kingdom Home Business Business Home Economy Technology Media Small Business Legal Deals Earnings Social Pulse Business Video The Freeland File Markets Markets Home U.S. Markets European Markets Asian Markets Global Market Data Indices M&A Stocks Bonds Currencies Commodities Futures Funds peHUB World World Home U.S. Brazil China Euro Zone Japan Mexico Russia India Insight World Video Reuters Investigates Decoder Politics Politics Home Election 2012 Issues 2012 Candidates 2012 Tales from the Trail Political Punchlines Supreme Court Politics Video Tech Technology Home MediaFile Science Tech Video Tech Tonic Social Pulse Opinion Opinion Home Chrystia Freeland John Lloyd Felix Salmon Jack Shafer David Rohde Bernd Debusmann Nader Mousavizadeh Lucy P. Marcus David Cay Johnston Bethany McLean Edward Hadas Hugo Dixon Ian Bremmer Lawrence Summers Susan Glasser The Great Debate Steven Brill Jack & Suzy Welch Frederick Kempe Christopher Papagianis Breakingviews Equities Credit Private Equity M&A Macro & Markets Politics Breakingviews Video Money Money Home Tax Break Lipper Awards 2012 Global Investing MuniLand Unstructured Finance Linda Stern Mark Miller John Wasik James Saft Analyst Research Alerts Watchlist Portfolio Stock Screener Fund Screener Personal Finance Video Money Clip Investing 201 Life Health Sports Arts Faithworld Business Traveler Entertainment Oddly Enough Lifestyle Video Pictures Pictures Home Reuters Photographers Full Focus Video Reuters TV Reuters News Article Comments (0) Slideshow Pictures The 100 most powerful celebrities Forbes ranks the most powerful celebrities in the world. Slideshow Follow Reuters Facebook Twitter RSS YouTube Read Iran attack decision nears, Israeli elite locks down 12:39pm EDT Analysis: Greeks not alone in bank savings exodus 8:15am EDT Plans to strike Iran "ready," says U.S. Israel envoy 6:51am EDT Insight: Greek exit could cost eurozone 100s of billions of euros | 8:29am EDT Several brokerages stop taking Facebook IPO orders | 16 May 2012 Discussed 172 Romney apologizes for bullying incident at school 158 Germany’s Merkel dealt heavy blow in state vote 112 Weary warriors favor Obama Watched A look at the UK’s most beautiful face Thu, May 10 2012 Paralysis patient tastes freedom through thought control Wed, May 16 2012 Surfer rides 78-foot wave to world record Fri, May 11 2012 Pictures Reuters Photojournalism Our day's top images, in-depth photo essays and offbeat slices of life. See the best of Reuters photography. See more | Photo caption Inside Greece An insider's look at the people and places that define Greece. Slideshow Transgendered Indian Seema is transgender, one of hundreds of thousands in India who are ostracised, often abused and forced into prostitution. Slideshow Contestants? It's TV talent judges basking in fame, cash Tweet Share this Email Print Related News Busy Jennifer Lopez casts doubt on more "American Idol" 12:33pm EDT Britney is back - and so are the brickbats Wed, May 16 2012 J.Lo topples Gaga to lead Forbes celebrity power list Wed, May 16 2012 Analysis: Key to Universal-EMI decision: Has music business lost control? Wed, May 16 2012 Cowell vows to "kick butt" with new "Factor" stars Mon, May 14 2012 Analysis & Opinion India not shining — on prime-time TV A star for Scarlett Related Topics Entertainment » Fashion » Television » Music » Media » 1 of 3. Singer Britney Spears poses with her award for Best Pop Video and the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award at the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards in Los Angeles August 28, 2011. Credit: Reuters/Danny Moloshok By Jill Serjeant LOS ANGELES | Thu May 17, 2012 10:31am EDT LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Time was when TV talent shows set out to turn wannabes into stars. These days? Not so much. It's the celebrity judges who are raking in the cash and using TV contests not only as a way to re-launch a fading career, but to further boost a thriving one. For music stars in an era of weak record sales, the trend spells victory for their bank account, but for fans and the music industry always hungering for a new star, it's a loss. And for TV networks, the once cheap-to-produce shows are ever more expensive, yet they don't always pay off in bigger audiences. As recent winners of "The Voice" and "American Idol" fade into obscurity, pop princess Britney Spears and ex-Disney Channel teen star Demi Lovato have signed up to judge "The X Factor," while controversial radio DJ Howard Stern is the biggest star on the new season of "America's Got Talent". Spears and Stern are among the most highly-paid TV judges, each earning a reported $15-$20 million annual salary - a bigger figure than many A-list Hollywood actors command for a movie. "The whole playing field has shifted from when 'American Idol' started (2002) and the judges were people whose biggest hits were behind them. Now it is seen as a really viable option for current artists," said Melinda Newman, a music blogger for entertainment website Hitfix.com. Spears and Stern join a roster of celebrity TV judges that includes Christina Aguilera, Steven Tyler, Sharon Osbourne, Cee Lo Green and Blake Shelton who have seen their fame, record sales and endorsement deals skyrocket since they began sitting in front of the stage rather than on it. Kelly Clarkson, the first "American Idol" champion and now a Grammy-winning singer with worldwide celebrity, joins the judge club next week on "Duets," which pairs would-be singers with established stars. Lyndsey Parker, managing editor of Yahoo! Music, said a lot of people were surprised at Clarkson's decision, but "no-one is looking at that as a step back." With the focus on the judges, what happens to the wannabe pop stars these shows were supposed to discover and promote? "The unfortunate thing is that as there becomes more emphasis on hiring famous names, it goes off the contestants," Parker said. IT PAYS TO JUDGE Back in 2002, record producer Simon Fuller - the man behind Britain's "Spice Girls" - created "American Idol" as a way to discover and sign new singers to his 19 Entertainment group. Few people had ever heard of judge Simon Cowell, an acerbic British record producer. Host Ryan Seacrest was an ambitious Los Angeles radio DJ, Randy Jackson was a backroom record producer and Paula Abdul was an almost forgotten 1980s pop star. Fuller's format worked for several years, turning Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Clay Aiken, Jennifer Hudson, Chris Daughtry and Adam Lambert into bonafide recording artists bringing in millions of dollars for record companies. But by 2011, given the success of the show as the most-watched program on U.S. airwaves averaging well over 20 million viewers a week, the dynamic of making a celebrity had shifted. That year, "Idol" champion Scotty McCreery saw his debut album sell more than one million copies, but his success was dwarfed by that of incoming judges Jennifer Lopez and Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler. Lopez, who had been dropped by her record company before joining "American Idol," scored her biggest single ever with "On the Floor", launched a fashion line, got her own Latin music talent show, multiple endorsement deals and a world tour. This week Lopez topped the annual Forbes list of the world's 100 most powerful celebrities. Tyler, 64, has won new fans, written a book and pulled Aerosmith back from the verge of an acrimonious break-up and into the recording studio for the band's first album of original material since 2001. "Tyler probably opened the door in a huge way because he is a rock legend. I think a lot of people were surprised that someone of his stature would do it," said Parker. Also in 2011 came "The Voice," which has proven to be one of the few ratings winners for NBC. Yet, last year's champion Javier Colon and runner-up Dia Frampton didn't even crack the Billboard top 100 with their debut albums. Moreover, while the show has been an NBC bright spot, it failed to challenge "American Idol" for overall viewers this year as strongly as some industry experts had predicted. About 15 million viewers tuned in for "The Voice" on average this year, compared to more than 19 million for "Idol". The stars of "The Voice," however, fared better. Judges Aguilera and Maroon 5 frontman Adam Levine had one of the world's biggest selling singles of 2011 with "Moves Like Jagger" which they first performed on the show. Country artist Shelton has seen his mainstream star soar since he joined "The Voice." Jermaine Paul, last week's winner of the second season of "The Voice" has yet to produce an album. His cover version of "I Believe I Can Fly" fared well on iTunes the day after his win, but it was a blip compared to Maroon 5's "Payphone" single with rapper Wiz Khalifa, which debuted on "The Voice" in April. KING OF ALL MEDIA? Now entering the fray are Spears and Stern, who were hired by Cowell in a bid to produce bigger ratings for their respective shows: "X Factor" which returns in Fall 2012 and "America's Got Talent" which debuted this week. Stern, the self-described "King of All Media" whose satellite radio show on SiriusXM is reported to earn him some $80 million a year, insists his reason for doing "America's Got Talent" is simply that he is a big fan of talent shows. "I didn't need the money. I didn't need more fame. I certainly feel famous enough. I certainly feel I am comfortable in my life and I am happy about that. I just love the show. And I thought, 'wow, how much fun to do it,'" he told reporters in a news conference last week. Yet for all the fanfare around his hiring, Stern's first outing this week on "America's Got Talent" was watched by about five million fewer people than last year's season kickoff. Then there is Spears. After almost 15 years as a global pop icon, the former Disney star now 30 and a mother of two kids, may have a different motive than Stern for joining "X Factor". "That is a steady paycheck without having to go on the road. That is how she makes her money now, not by record sales, but by touring and endorsement deals," said Parker. But will she bring more viewers? That is, after all, what producer Cowell and broadcast network Fox hope she will do. And if so, will those viewers create the world's next big thing in music like "American Idol" once did? Last season's "X Factor" winner, Melanie Amaro, had little impact on the U.S. music scene with her first single and five months on, she is still working on her debut album. Times have changed, and Andy Dehnart, editor of RealityBlurred.com, expressed concern for Spears. "I think 'X Factor' is a gigantic ego trip for Simon Cowell and I worry that Britney is another piece of that," he said. That's not to say TV talent shows don't occasionally still find stars who eclipse their mentors, such as British boy band One Direction. But "now it seems like all the shows are trying to one up each other by stocking their judging panel with people who are already famous, and that does make it harder for the contestants to stand out," said Parker. (Additional reporting by Christine Kearney; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte and Patricia Reaney) Entertainment Fashion Television Music Media Tweet this Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints We welcome comments that advance the story through relevant opinion, anecdotes, links and data. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters. For more information on our comment policy, see http://blogs.reuters.com/fulldisclosure/2010/09/27/toward-a-more-thoughtful-conversation-on-stories/ Comments (0) Be the first to comment on reuters.com. Add yours using the box above. Edition: U.S. Africa Arabic Argentina Brazil Canada China France Germany India Italy Japan Latin America Mexico Russia Spain United Kingdom Back to top Reuters.com Business Markets World Politics Technology Opinion Money Pictures Videos Site Index Legal Bankruptcy Law California Legal New York Legal Securities Law Support & Contact Support Corrections Connect with Reuters Twitter Facebook LinkedIn RSS Podcast Newsletters Mobile About Privacy Policy Terms of Use AdChoices Copyright Our Flagship financial information platform incorporating Reuters Insider An ultra-low latency infrastructure for electronic trading and data distribution A connected approach to governance, risk and compliance Our next generation legal research platform Our global tax workstation Thomsonreuters.com About Thomson Reuters Investor Relations Careers Contact Us Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests. NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.

Other News on Thursday, 17 May 2012
Iran flouts U.N. sanctions, sends arms to Syria: panel |
U.S. to seek G8 support for oil reserve release: Kyodo |
U.S. path out of Afghanistan faces risks |
Police disperse, detain anti-Putin protesters |
ICC prosecutor OK with delay to trial of Kenyans |
Monti, Hollande, Merkel, Cameron in videocall Thursday |
Exclusive: Order knew for months about priest scandal: Vatican official |
Several brokerages stop taking Facebook IPO orders |
Sprint CEO sees more telecom M&A's possible |
Google revamps U.S. search |
A post-IPO Facebook strategy |
Verizon sees revenue increase from shared plans |
Huawei: EU contract plans may signal more curbs |
Italy Microsoft head in pole for CEO position at RCS: sources |
Baron Cohen's Dictator storms Cannes, camel in tow |
Carrie Underwood keeps Billboard No. 1, Adele going strong |
Exclusive: Iran flouts U.N. sanctions, sends arms to Syria: panel |
ECB move on Greek banks hits euro confidence |
Plans to strike Iran ready, says U.S. Israel envoy |
Iran nuclear output seen steady before Baghdad talks |
North Korea resumes work on nuclear reactor: report |
Chinese boats seized by North Koreans in rare public spat |
Hollande taps old hands, new faces for French government |
North Lebanon fighting kills one; ninth in five days |
U.S. sends warning to Saleh backers in Yemen |
Several brokerages stop taking Facebook IPO orders |
Pinterest raises $100 million in funding: WSJ |
Ad execs say jury still out on Facebook as medium |
Viacom, Time Warner Cable reach iPad views settlement |
Toshiba eyes $5.6 billion operating profit by 2014-15 |
FCC chooses spectrum for wireless medical devices |
Activision and Electronic Arts settle lawsuit |
Apple readies iPhone with bigger screen: sources |
Google to meet French regulator on privacy policy |
Britney is back
Godfather of Go-Go' Chuck Brown dies at 75 |
Busy Jennifer Lopez casts doubt on more American Idol |
Cannes festival opens with quirky comedy and a camel |
Is it curtains for Afghanistan's fading silver screen? |
Family cancels weekend search for missing Hollywood executive |
Spain beset by bank crisis, recession, bond pressure |
Five hurt in emergency plane landing in Munich |
Iran attack decision nears, Israeli elite locks down |
Analysis: Saudi Gulf union plan stumbles as wary leaders seek detail |
Europe's banks on the brink |
Horrors of Srebrenica set out at Mladic trial |
Nigeria robbers accidentally blow up own bus |
Syria's Assad: Nations that sow chaos will suffer |
Analysis: Facebook can't take Asian growth for granted |
No respite for HP, Dell in Windows 8: BMO |
Wi-Lan says court rules in its favor in patent case |
Samsung not seen quaking in boots over Apple-Elpida report |
Pinterest funding could value startup at $1.5 billion |
Kochs help Republicans catch up on technology |
Belgian actor wins plaudits and first Cannes crush |
Contestants? It's TV talent judges basking in fame, cash |
Busy Jennifer Lopez casts doubt on more American Idol |
Regret but no surprise Cannes lacks women directors |
Cannes festival opens with quirky comedy and a camel |
Members of the Wiggles hand on to next generation |
Greece at new risk of being pushed off euro
Bodies of missing Tenn. mom, Jo Ann Bain, and daughter found
Female Breasts Are Bigger Than Ever
AMD Trinity Accelerated Processing Units Now in Volume Production
The Avengers (2012 film), made the second biggest opening- and single-day gross of all-time
AMD to Start Production of piledriver
Ivy Bridge Quad-Core, Four-Thread Desktop CPUs
Islamists Protest Lady Gaga's Concert in Indonesia
Japan Successfully Broadcasts an 8K Signal Over the Air
ECB boosts loans to 1 trillion Euro to stop credit crunch
Egypt : Mohammed Morsi won with 52 percent
What do you call 100,000 Frenchmen with their hands up
AMD Launches AMD Embedded R-Series APU Platform
Fed Should not Ignore Emerging Market Crisis
Fed casts shadow over India, emerging markets
Why are Chinese tourists so rude? A few insights

USD EUR - 1 year graph	VPN on MacOSX	BlogMeter 1.01