American Idol prepares for swansong

New York

AT its height, American Idol minted break-out stars and drew more than 30 million viewers an episode. It was the No 1 broadcast show for eight years, provided a boon to an ailing music industry and was the sort of appointment television that industry executives are desperately trying to recreate.

That was then. The show has aged and the singing competition genre has faded. In recent years the Idol audience has eroded at an alarming rate, with losses in total viewership in eight of the last nine seasons. This season, it is drawing under nine million viewers, its fewest ever.