Fox Television announced yesterday that the fourth judge's seat on American Idol, recently vacated by Paula Abdul, will be filled by comedian and talk show host Ellen DeGeneres. In a taping of her show to be broadcast today DeGeneres played up her position being something like a fan on the panel. "Hopefully, I'm the people's point of view because I'm just like you...I'm not looking at it in a critical way from the producer's mind. I'm looking at it as a person who is going to buy the music and is going to relate to that person." Admittedly, Ellen DeGeneres has a wealth of stage experience as a comedian that could be helpful to aspiring performers on American Idol. However, that is not the role the producers or Ellen DeGeneres seem to see her filling on the show.
A key element of American Idol in its first eight seasons has seemed to be its "separation of powers" putting music industry professionals on a judges panel while leaving the ultimate decisions to fans through voting. With the elevation of a "fan" to the judges panel that separation has come to an end. Those who watch the show also have some concern having seen Ellen DeGeneres in action as a guest judge on So You Think You Can Dance. She seemed to be present primarily as comic relief not truly as a judge. The ultimate effect of this decision on American Idol will not be seen until the ninth season airs in 2010, but I suspect one of the things we might miss most about Paula Abdul is her empathy with contestants knowing exactly what it means to be on stage as a singer and performer.
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