Fox Denies Swapping Mariah Carey for Jennifer Lopez on "Idol" - East Idaho News
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Fox Denies Swapping Mariah Carey for Jennifer Lopez on “Idol”

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GETTY E 072412 MariahCarey?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1366881749494Steve Mack/FilmMagic(LOS ANGELES) — Fox has responded to the rumors of a possible American Idol shakeup, and as you’d expect, the network is adamantly denying they are true.

The Hollywood Reporter published a story this week claiming that Idol producers, concerned about the show’s declining ratings, were recently considering replacing first-year judge Mariah Carey with former panelist Jennifer Lopez in midseason.  It would have been a highly unusual move, obviously, given that the Idol season finale is just three weeks away.

It’s true that Lopez will return to Idol, but it appears it won’t be as a judge. 

The Los Angeles Times quotes a Fox spokesperson as saying, “This is just another ridiculous Idol judge rumor, likely started by talks of Jennifer performing on the finale.”

TMZ.com says Lopez is indeed slated to be a musical guest on the finale.

The Hollywood Reporter story stated that Carey put the kibosh on the alleged switch by threatening legal action.

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