Randy Jackson leaving 'American Idol' Jackson out. Randy Jackson, the lone original "American Idol" judge, says he won't be returning to the Fox talent competition. "To put all of the speculation to the rest, after 12 years of judging on `American Idol,' I have decided to leave after this season," Jackson said in a statement Thursday. More
NBC orders 5 new TV series for next season Sean Hayes, Parker Posey, Minnie Driver and Gillian Anderson have prominent roles in new television series that NBC will try next season. The network said Thursday that it had ordered five new series, in advance of its annual schedule announcement Sunday. More
Lucci, Trebek donate TV objects to Smithsonian The Smithsonian Institution is adding relics from soap operas and game shows to its national entertainment collection to tell the story of daytime television. More
Vice President Kamala Harris arrived in Hawaii this week with her husband Doug Emhoff for a nearly weeklong stay, the Honolulu Star Advertiser reports.
“Antiabortion advocates are moving aggressively in the wake of the election to devise new measures to punish people and organizations that help women get abortions, feeling emboldened to crack down on the flow of abortion pills into states with bans and no longer burdened by fear of political backlash,” the Washington Post reports.
“Antiabortion leaders are particularly energized by the prospect of their allies filling key posts in a Trump administration.”
“President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday instructed congressional Republicans to block the passage of a bipartisan federal shield bill intended to strengthen the ability of reporters to protect confidential sources, dealing a potentially fatal political blow to the measure — even though the Republican-controlled House had already passed it unanimously,” the New York Times reports.
“A Tennessee man who was among the first wave of rioters to storm the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, was convicted on Wednesday of separate charges of plotting to kill the FBI agents who investigated his role in the attack,” the New York Times reports.