Final American Idol Judging Panel - You Make the Deals You Can Make

The rumors, stops and starts, and time it took to fill the judges' chairs for American Idol this summer are a clear sign of the show's problems. With its ratings plunging last season, and expected to fall further in 2014, top talents didn't want to be associated with the show. The show's new producers, stuck with high expectations, either couldn't or wouldn't take the chance of creating a panel entirely of successful former contestants. It's possible Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, and Jennifer Hudson didn't want to take time from their busy careers to sit in the judges' seat -- at least not for the amount of money Fox was willing to offer. Instead, with their backs to the wall (production starting this month)the producers first re-signed Keith Urban, whose nice guy persona will at least make contestants comfortable. With a year of experience and a different panel, perhaps this year he'll get a word in edgewise. Next they reportedly spent $17.5 million to re-sign Jennifer Lopez, a judge the previous regime had tossed over the side just a year ago. Lopez was probably happy to get the gig. Her music and acting career is stalling, and after her recent divorce she probably could use the money. After they lost record producer Dr. Luke over contract conflicts of interest, reports are they signed Harry Connick, Jr. to fill the third slot. Harry also has a nice guy persona like Keith Urban, so perhaps Jennifer Lopez will fill the Simon Cowell role of acerbic truth teller. Further rumors are that Randy Jackson will return as mentor. I think bringing Randy back in a different role is a great idea. For long-time fans, Randy provides continuity to the glory days of idol. In earlier blogs on this topic I said, and still believe, the problem with Idol wasn't the judges, but the contestants. America needs people they can care about. I just can't believe out of the thousands who audition every year they couldn't find more compelling contestants than the ones chosen for last season's show. Rather than spend $7.5 million on a single judge they would be better off spending $7.5 million on talent scouts and coordinators to make sure only the most interesting contestants and story lines get to the finals. I'm sure they could find a former contestant who's had some success to judge the show for just $10 million -- Chris Daughtry, Adam Lambert, Fantasia, Ruben Stoddard, and maybe Jordin Sparks would consider it. What content creators can learn from this hoopla is: sometimes you have to make the deals you can make. The producers may have wanted to take the judging panel in a different direction (they certainly tried to sign other judges first. Their production deadline meant judges had to be signed by a certain time, and the longer it took, the less leverage they had to find the ideal judges. I'm sure that Harry Connick's price went up after Dr. Luke dropped out because he knew they needed him and were out of time. When you're creating a movie or a television show you can't always sign your ideal cast or afford your ideal production values. Successful producers and directors make it work anyway by focusing on the key points of the story they're trying to tell. It's possible that the current Idol judge panel will work, as long as the most important part of the show -- the contestants -- capture the viewers' imagination. When you're creating your content don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good. Make the deals you need to make things happen, and protect the core of the story to connect with your audience.