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Tuesday, May 15, 2012 12:45 AM UTC

Britney Spears joining Fox’s ‘The X Factor’

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Topics: From the Wires,

NEW YORK (AP) — Britney Spears and Demi Lovato are joining the judging panel on “The X Factor” this fall, part of Fox’s effort to boost its underperforming music competition shows.

The network’s executives, in presenting next season’s schedule to advertisers on Monday, also promised changes for “American Idol.” While “Idol” remains Fox’s centerpiece, as it has been for the past decade, it has lost a quarter of its audience this year.

Fox is adding two new comedies and a drama in the fall, pumping new life into “Glee” by moving it to a new night with guest stars Kate Hudson and Sarah Jessica Parker and touting a midseason drama starring Kevin Bacon as “the new ’24.’”

The Spears announcement overshadowed the others. Despite weeks of rumors, it wasn’t official until she strode onto New York’s Beacon Theater stage wearing a white minidress, accompanied by show creator Simon Cowell and fellow judges Lovato and L.A. Reid.

“I’m so excited about the whole experience,” Spears said. “It’s going to be so much fun and different from anything I’ve ever done. I’m ready to find the true star.”

Lovato said she was “totally stoked” to join the cast.

They replace judges Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger, who were dispatched along with host Steve Jones after last fall’s debut season of the competition didn’t meet the creator’s inflated expectations.

“Not to be negative about the people leaving, but we just felt the mix could be more effective and more entertaining,” said Peter Rice, entertainment chairman for the Fox Networks Group.

Fox’s entertainment president, Kevin Reilly, also promised work on “American Idol” next season but didn’t specify anything.

“This year was a bigger drop-off than we anticipated,” Reilly said.

He said “Idol” made no changes from the previous year and there was little “urgency to view” at the beginning of the season. He said there was still a lot of life left in the franchise.

“Glee,” once a sensation, saw its viewership drop by 21 percent this season. It will move to Thursday nights and a comfortable 9 p.m. Eastern time slot following “The X Factor” in the fall. Reilly said the show is “poised for a creative renaissance” and has Hudson and Parker lined up for multi-episode guest slots.

Part of the reason Fox moved “Glee” is to make Tuesday a four-sitcom night, with two new shows joining “New Girl” and “Raising Hope.” Mindy Kaling, actress, producer and writer for “The Office,” creates and stars in “The Mindy Project,” a romantic comedy about a doctor looking for love. The other new comedy, “Ben and Kate,” is about a pair of odd couple siblings.

“We’ve been building comedy momentum on Tuesday, and we finally have the shows that have exactly the tone that we are looking for,” Reilly said.

The fall’s only new drama is “The Mob Doctor,” on Monday night, about a young doctor who has to pay off her family’s lifelong debt to the Chicago mob.

Reilly said Bacon’s hiring for the midseason drama “The Following” was the casting coup of the year. Bacon plays a former FBI agent asked to come back to work to chase a serial killer he had caught once before. The killer escaped from prison and has resumed a series of grisly murders.

Another comedy focused on a family, “The Goodwin Games,” is due at midseason and stars actor Scott Foley, of “Felicity” and “Grey’s Anatomy.”

Fox’s long-running drama “House” is ending its run this spring, and the network is cancelling high-profile dramas “Terra Nova” and “Alcatraz.”

Fox also has made changes to its long-running Saturday night lineup, where “COPS” won’t return until midseason. In the fall, Fox will present live sports events such as college football, Major League baseball and NASCAR races that night.

David Bauder

More David Bauder.

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Gripping photos: The people of the Turkey protests (slideshow)

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  • The protests take on a festive element as police forces move out of the park and square. Wearing a gas mask, this young man dances to traditional Turkish music in front of Taksim Square’s Ataturk Monument.

  • In Gezi Park since March 31st, this protester, originally caught off-guard by the Government’s teargas and water cannons, went out and bought a Russian army mask from WWII, preparing for what was to come.

  • This rambunctious boy seems to be enjoying the chaos. After taking this picture he threw a stone at the already destroyed building in the background.

  • Forming a line, the police face off directly with protesters in Taksim Square. After a while, they retreated and there was a general cheer – a back-and-forth dance that has been common since the beginning of this protest.

  • An elderly woman in Gezi Park reads the news. The tent community occupying the park was violently destroyed on June 16th.

  • Many different groups had set up booths to promote their cause in Taksim Square and Gezi Park. Standing in front of one, this man waves his flag while posing with conviction.

  • Many home-remedies are used to minimize the effects of tear gas. This woman has put a milky solution on her face, removing her mask after the tear gas dissipated. Before sunrise, the police came again for another round of teargasing.

  • People capitalize on the uprising -- selling flags, beer, gas masks, sky lanterns and spray paint to name just a few of the popular items.

  • On Monday morning, June 11, the police execute a strong offensive. Many plain-clothed police officers, like the ones seen here, clash with protesters in the side streets away from the main stand-off in Taksim.

  • The authorities seem to be most aggressive in the night, pushing protesters away from the square and park. After being teargassed this young woman catches her breath with other protesters on Siraselviler Street.

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