Past Deadline: 'Idol' dominates Fox TCA session

January 22, 2007 Fox entertainment president Peter Liguori faced down something of an angry mob Saturday morning during the final day of the Television Critics Assn.'s winter press tour, answering questions with great dexterity while tiptoeing through minefields involving "American Idol," O.J. Simpson and why his network tends to drop off the primetime radar in the fall and magically reappear in January. Simon Cowell in particular -- have opened the show's sixth season by upping the quotient of nastiness when dealing with talent-challenged contestants who have no business being there in the first place. Indeed, it's a formula that continues to set ratings standards this season as consistently TV's most-watched series across all demographics.

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