With only three weeks and six episodes left in Simon Cowell’s (above with his fiance) American Idol tenure, don’t be surprised if rumors and speculation about his season 10 replacement begin to intensify. But under the heading of “don’t believe everything you read,” a show source tells EW that Cowell’s successor will not be named until after the May 26 season finale. (That, of course, also means no bombshell announcement at Fox’s May 17 upfronts presentation, when the network will unveil its fall schedule to advertisers.)

The delay in finalizing such a crucial decision makes sense on several levels. For starters, any replacement announcement before month’s end would steal some of the spotlight away from the show’s current crop of contestants, not to mention Cowell’s role in the season 9 finale extravaganza. What’s more, Fox and Idol will score plenty of free publicity as debate over Cowell 2.0 turns into a popular summer sport, one that should keep water cooler buzz alive for the reality juggernaut during its seven-month hiatus from the airwaves. As Fox chariman Peter Rice said back at the network’s TCA presentation in January, “We’re not going to rush into something. We’re not going to try to find a Simon clone who can do what he does because, you know, he’s one of a kind. But the [Idol] format itself, people love.”

Cowell, for his part, is moving on to executive produce and judge a U.S. version of his British hit, The X Factor, slated to debut on Fox in fall 2011.

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Although ‘American Idol’ contestant Crystal Bowersox admits she briefly considered quitting the show, she never thought host Ryan Seacrest would go public about her “moment of weakness,” the NY Post reports. Last week, TMZ reported that Bowersox contemplated leaving ‘Idol,’ but that Seacrest swooped in and saved the day. But after news broke, Bowersox sent a text message to Katelyn Epperly, a friend from the ‘Idol’ Top 24 tryouts, admitting she’d been “betrayed by Seacrest” and had never been seriously ready to quit. “She had a moment backstage and they made it into something it wasn’t … She’s still in the game,” Epperly said.

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Overwhelmed by the stress and pressure of being on ‘American Idol,’ contestant Crystal Bowersox threatened to walk off the show. ‘Idol’ host Ryan Seacrest stepped in and had a quick heart-to-heart with her in the show’s parking lot, TMZ reports.

Sources claim Bowersox told him she couldn’t handle the competition and didn’t like all the media attention and threatened to move back to Ohio to be with her family.

Luckily, Seacrest convinced the ‘Idol’ hopeful to stick it out. He pushed the fact that if she won she’d get a recording contract and become a millionaire. Guess that was enough to make her stay.

According to TMZ, Seacrest told her, “The greatest thing I ever did was make enough money so I could buy my mom a house. You can buy your mom a house.”

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It’s a huge secret, but America Idol producers might be trying to woo Paula Abdul back to the struggling show.

Although still immensely popular, ratings are way down this season compared to when Paula was on the panel, and executives fear the loss of even more viewers when Simon Cowell leaves after this season.

“They want Paula back,” the insider says. “They’re not sure if she’d be the fifth judge, but they are talking to her. People tuned in to see Paula’s wacky antics and her chemistry with Simon. The show is just not as much fun to watch without her.”

What do you think? Should Paula return to American Idol? (I’m not watching it this season, because I think it’s quite possibly the worst season to date!)

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You could almost hear America’s collective sigh of relief — or was that a sigh of frustration?

Wednesday’s results show was the most dramatic so far this season on American Idol. After Ryan Seacrest announced that lovable Michael Lynche received the lowest number of votes on Lennon-McCartney night and would face elimination, he sang for his life, reprising his performance of “This Woman’s Work” for the judges. Lucky for Big Mike he delivered (watch a clip), and the panel unanimously voted to bring him back next week, using up their one chance this season to save a contestant.

Now, a debate is raging on People.com about whether using the only judges’ save was a good idea or not. Check out these comments:

“I’m glad they saved Mike. He’s my choice for runner up.” – Jenny

“Any of the bottom 3 could have gone. Saving Lynch was a bad idea. Now the 1 save is gone and leaves no hope for a save for the really talented singers. Now we are stuck with the cute young contestants who are really weak, inconsistent singers, but who the teeny bopper crowd will love and vote for incessantly. Bad call on the part of the judges.” – Alice

“That was a huge shocker. That’s how you sing for your life Big Mike! I was so happy the judges used the save on him. He needs to pick a better song for next week.” – Julie

“Big Mike should have been gone. There should not be a judges save. The people voted and they voted him out. I can’t stand him or his signing. He acts like he thinks he’s great. Maybe this will knock him down a couple of notches…….but he still has got to go.” – Donna

“stop hating, mike deserved the save” – Dedia

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Former American Idol winner David Cook spoke to reporters from Ethiopia today in a press conference call to encourage people to donate to the upcoming Idol Gives Back special.

“I’ve been extremely moved by this trip,” David said. “It’s been a huge learning experience for me.”

The singer is visiting Ethiopia as part of a United Nations effort aimed at helping adolescent girls in the country. The story of David’s experience there will be shown on Idol Gives Back, which will air on FOX on April 21. The FOX show, as in the past, encourages viewers to call in donations to benefit relief efforts around the world.

The rocker, who won AI two years ago, revealed why he wanted to be a part of the special.

“I remember on my season when we did Idol Gives Back, we watched Annie Lennox’s performance and in the background they were showing images of the children,” David reminisced. “It tore me apart. My reality is not their reality. You want to help. This couldn’t have come at a better time.”

David went to Ethiopia to find out about the living conditions and how donations can help girls there. He met a seven-year-old girl at a school whose parents had passed away.

“She’s one of the most vibrant, joyous girls I’ve ever met,” David said. “The girls at the school want to learn, to have better education, to have that opportunity. That’s inspiring, to see a seven-year-old girl want to build a better future for herself.”

Elizabeth Gore of the United Nations Foundation, who participated in the press conference call with David, said the girls badly need school supplies to continue their education. Some of them have to go fetch water for six to 15 hours a day because they don’t have water holes nearby.

David visited a school and said, “There’s definitely a sense of hope. Donating just two dollars to these girls makes a world of difference. I feel kind of guilty [about] what the people have to deal with on a daily basis. It’s something that truly deserves our attention.”

He told reporters his Idol fame meant nothing to them: “Very few people here know who I am. We did get the chance to play some music for them.”

David isn’t sure if he will perform on Idol Gives Back, but he will be part of the special in some way to build awareness about the situation of Ethiopia’s young girls.

“People here need a helping hand and we’re in a great position to give that to them,” he said.

Source, Fame Pictures

American Idol fans will get a look at teen idol Miley Cyrus, but forget about seeing late-night victim Conan O’Brien on the hit show.

Miley will be the special guest on Tuesday’s Idol, mentoring the remaining 11 contestants — even thought most are older than the 17-year-old star! Miley, whose movie The Last Song opens March 31, is also set to sing her new single, “When I Look at You.”

On the elimination show the next night, Miley’s best friend, Demi Lovato, will perform with her boyfriend, Joe Jonas, but deposed Tonight Show host Conan O’Brien won’t appear on the show anytime soon. Conan was invited by producers to be on the “Idol Gives Back” episode, scheduled for April 21, which this year will benefit the United Nation’s Foundation Fund for Haiti, the Children’s Health Fund and other charitable groups. But NBC is saying no to the charity appearance because Conan cannot appear on TV until May, according to the agreement he reached with the network when he was fired from Tonight.

Source, Fame Pictures