‘America’s Got Talent’: Are Shannen Doherty, LeAnn Rimes judging candidates?

With Sharon Osbourne’s exit all but confirmed from “America’s Got Talent,” Simon Cowell and the rest of the producers are going to eventually have to do the right thing here and start looking at some of their other options to be the third member of the judging panel. After all, the audition rounds start taping in a number of months, and you do not want to be scrambling at the last minute.

According to TMZ, this means that producers are already supposedly scouting out some new favorites. Three women who are currently at the top of the rumor mill all come from different sort of backgrounds: Shannen Doherty, Carly Simon, and LeAnn Rimes. Are any of these women great choices? We’re not quite sure. In the case of the first two, you have ladies who were once major stars, but have since fallen out of the limelight and are not relevant to young viewers today. As for LeAnn, she’s a controversial pick based on her personal life. Regardless of whether or not it is “fair” to do so, her relationship with Eddie Cibrian has turned her into a reviled figure to many in this country. Her music career has struggled as of late, and the “X Factor” USA rumors about her turned out to be just gossip.

The problem with this judging search at the moment is really just that everything is still so fluid. Neither Howard Stern and Howie Mandel have yet to sign new contracts themselves, and it could take confirmation on that before NBC and the producers know for sure how much money they have to spend on a third judge. Mandel is expected to return, and Stern is a little more on the fence.

Let’s just hope that rather than relying on star power as “The X Factor” did with Britney Spears, the show finds someone who is knowledgeable of the talent industry, and someone who can help build a brand for the show. Remember, no one knew who Cowell, Len Goodman, or Piers Morgan were when they first joined their respective competitions, and now they are all household names because of them.

Do you think and of these women are good choices to be a judge, and if not, who do you want to see appear? Check back later in this week, as we are going to present our own picks for the third judging spot.