Let's start with all the things she's doesn't know (it's a lot). Why does she think they need a fourth judge? She claims not to "have any insight into that." She doesn't know where she is in the judging order (it's currently Randy, then Paula, then Simon, but she doesn't know where she'll be inserted into the mix), she doesn't know how ties will be broken now that there's an even number of judges, and she doesn't even know what her favorite AI season is. "I just know that I'm on the judges' panel and that I'm supposed to have my makeup done by 11 o'clock tomorrow. That's pretty much everything I know."

She did say, though, that Simon has been very nice and encouraging (she didn't say "so far," but it's obviously implied) that she works in Randy's studio and has seen him around a lot, and that she goes way back with Paula, professionally (they co-wrote Kylie Minogue's "Spinning Around" together, which I'll admit is one of my favorite pop songs of all time), but, having just landed the gig a few days ago, she hasn't spoken to her about it yet. "I've always had a great relationship with Paula. I can't imagine her not being happy with it. We've always been friends, and we shared a successful song together. I'm just looking forward to seeing her again." This led to a kind of comical moment where one reporter said she heard Paula say today that she's concerned about whether or not the audience will accept a new judge, which DioGuardi very quickly, practically cutting the reporter off, responded with, "I'm not concerned at all [about the comments]. Anybody with their right brain would say something like that. She's on a big, big show and she's probably pondering what could or could not happen, just like anybody would." So yeah, she was ready and waiting for that one. I don't blame her.

In terms of what kind of judge she'll be, she just kept saying she'd be very honest and that she plans to be a "straight-shooter," among other things. "I'm just somebody who's really honest and gives my opinion, and if I feel I need to be hard with someone to get that across I will be, and if I feel like I need to be softer and more nurturing with some of the contestants, I'll be that. It really depends on the situation." So she's basically a more eloquent Randy, by the sound of it, which is great. It's no secret that the show is stale as hell and that the judging has become painfully predictable, so hopefully she's saving her more colorful side for the show. I can promise you that she's 1,000 times more coherent than Paula, which may just be worth the extra time a new judge will eat up, all by itself.