HOLLYWOOD—This year “American Idol” has turned its attention to the judges, instead of the contestants. Even though we love Ellen DeGeneres, one thing is for sure, we all miss Paula Abdul. Ellen lacks the music-industry expertise, so her contribution to the show is minimal. No surprise there. Now the attention is on who will replace Simon Cowell as he makes his way towards the exit.   

Despite the decline in viewers the show still remains a hit. By focusing on the judges, it may feel like the contestants are getting cheated. Simon Cowell is the only one of the judges that really knows what he’s talking about. But he’s leaving, so does he really care? Randy Jackson is known as the judge who uses street slang in his critiques, including his infamous “dawg.” Then we have, Kara DioGuardi, who has changed her looks; however, she is still struggling to find her personality. Truth be told, Randy and Kara, do have some real-music industry credentials as record producers.   

Last week, I mentioned Howard Stern as a rumored replacement for Simon Cowell. Unless, Stern wants to use “AI” as a strategic tactic to renegotiate his radio contract, it would be definitely interesting to watch. Simon’s days are numbered, so the show needs to find a replacement. The network is going to have a very hard time, since Simon is one-of-a-kind. So let’s guess who the show will scout to fill Simon’s shoes. Will the show turn to former finalists or winners? I don’t think so, since they are too involved in their own projects. A possibility would be, Tommy Mottola, a legendary music-industry veteran, once married to Mariah Carey. If they focus on a female, they might consider Kathy Griffin, if they want to go for a comedian. Kathy would definitely tell the contestants her honest, brutal opinion.   

Kathy, who stars in the Bravo reality series “My Life on the D-List,” scored a guest role on NBC’s “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” that will be aired on March 3. The comedian plays a gay activist who works with Detectives Benson (Mariska Hargitay) and Stabler (Christopher Meloni) after a woman from a lesbian community is found dead. The exposure on the show, could lead to a possibility on “Idol.”   

So who will win “Idol” this year? It’s definitely too early to predict, but the bets are on Katie Stevens. The last two years of “Idol” the winners have been guys. Rocker David Cook won in 2008 and Kris Allen won in 2009. The predictions are on the girls and leading is Katie, 17, who wants to win for her Alzheimer’s afflicted grandmother. In her Boston audition, she sang her rendition of Etta James, “At Last.”   

Rose’s Scoop: The Oscar organizers announced that Miley Cyrus, Zac Efron and “Twilight” co-stars Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner will be presenters at the awards show on March 7. This will bring in younger viewers to watch, smart move by the Academy.