‘Idol’ attracts more viewers than Olympics coverage

New York – The winter Olympics proved no match for television’s gold medal winner, “American Idol.”

Fox’s phenomenally successful contest crushed the Olympics in head-to-head competition on Tuesday night, 27 million viewers to 16.1 million, according to Nielsen Media Research.

The Olympics recovered a bit after “Idol” went off the air, but its overall audience of 18.6 million was the least-watched winter Olympics telecast since Nagano’s closing ceremonies in 1998, Nielsen said.

Since its opening on Friday, the Turin Games have been running well below the 2002 Salt Lake City games in viewership interest. Much of that was expected, but Tuesday’s ratings was the first alarming sign for NBC that increased TV competition has taken a toll.

“The competition from ‘Idol’ is heavier than the Olympics has ever seen,” said NBC Sports spokeswoman Alana Russo. In Salt Lake City, NBC faced no competition from top-10 Nielsen shows, for example, and now networks are throwing their top guns.

It doesn’t figure to get any easier, with “Idol” and ABC’s “Lost” on the air Wednesday. CBS’ “Survivor” and “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” offer more competition on Thursday.

Even figure skating, the most popular winter Olympics sport for viewers, didn’t help much on Tuesday. NBC filled about two-thirds of the hour during which it competed with “American Idol” with tape of the men’s figure-skating competition.

Through five nights of Olympics coverage, NBC’s average prime-time rating is 12.7 (a rating point represents 1,102,000 households, or 1 percent of the nation’s estimated 110.2 million TV homes). NBC said before the games started that it had promised its advertisers a rating of between 12 and 14. If it slips below that, NBC will have to make it up to advertisers with free commercial time.

“‘American Idol’ is clearly a phenomenon,” said Randy Falco, president of the NBC Universal Television Group. “But we expected it and are tracking right where we planned to be at this point.”

Between NBC and its affiliated cable networks, an estimated 65 percent of the nation’s television homes have tuned in at least some of the games, Falco said.

Nelson’s gay cowboy song debuts on Howard Stern show

Nashville, Tenn. – Willie Nelson sang “Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow up to Be Cowboys” and “My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys” more than 25 years ago.

The 72-year-old singer released a different sort of cowboy anthem this Valentine’s Day.

“Cowboys Are Frequently, Secretly (Fond of Each Other)” may be the first gay cowboy song by a major recording artist. But it was written long before this year’s Oscar-nominated “Brokeback Mountain” made gay cowboys a hot topic.

Available exclusively through iTunes, the song features Nelson’s deadpan delivery of lines such as “What did you think all them saddles and boots was about?”

The song, which debuted Tuesday on Howard Stern’s satellite radio show, was written by Texas-born singer-songwriter Ned Sublette in 1981.

According to Nelson’s record label, Lost Highway, Nelson recorded it last year at his Pedernales studio in Texas.

Mellencamp to perform free concert during Final Four

Indianapolis – John Mellencamp will take the stage in downtown’s Monument Circle on April 2 to perform a free concert during the NCAA’s Final Four.

The concert will take place in between the NCAA men’s basketball semifinals on April 1 and the championship game on April 3, Mellencamp’s publicist, Bob Merlis, told the Indianapolis Star.

Mellencamp, 54, is a native of Seymour who now lives near Bloomington. He’s also an Indiana University basketball fan.

“He’s out of his mind for basketball and CBS is using ‘R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.’ as the theme song for their coverage,” Merlis said. “This makes total sense.”

Bill Gates, Oprah Winfrey visit San Diego high school

San Diego – Microsoft Corp. Chairman Bill Gates and talk show host Oprah Winfrey visited a high school on Wednesday, surprising some of its students.

Gates and his wife, Melinda, spent about three hours at San Diego High School and met with nine students for an upcoming segment of “The Oprah Winfrey Show” about the billionaire’s school reform efforts.

Wednesday’s visit was not publicly announced and reporters were not allowed on campus.

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation gave $11 million to the San Diego Unified School District in 2003 to reform three large high schools, said Music McCall, a spokeswoman for the district.

Olsen twins don gowns in Badgley Mischka ads

New York – Mary-Kate Olsen and her twin sister, Ashley, known for their casual, layered, bohemian style, will wear red carpet-ready couture gowns in an ad campaign for Badgley Mischka.

“Ashley and Mary-Kate have grown up to become America’s young style icons. They have an amazing sense of fashion and individuality that intrigued us,” the design duo of Mark Badgley and James Mischka said Wednesday in a statement.

The Olsens attended Badgley Mischka’s fall preview at New York Fashion Week. The designers said the 19-year-old actresses “reflect the younger, edgier and more sensual glamour that we have incorporated in our latest fall collection.”