Howard Stern will return to NBC as a judge on its summer talent competition “America's Got Talent,†the network announced Monday morning.
The decision came after some doubt about whether Mr. Stern, who joined the series with much fanfare last summer, would walk away after one season on the series. Auditions for the next edition of the show have already begun.
The network had hoped Mr. Stern, with his large following built during his long radio career, would spark some ratings lift for the series.
That did not happen, though the series still performed well and NBC executives said the addition of Mr. Stern most likely prevented a sharp falloff in the show's performance after many years as the summer's only true ratings hit for network television.
NBC also agreed to move the live portions of the show to New York (they were actually shot in Newark) to accommodate Mr. Stern's radio schedule - he still performs most morning on SiriusXM satellite radio .
NBC will have to replace at least one of the other long-time judges: Sharon Osbourne has announced she was leaving the show.
Bill Carter writes about the television industry. Follow @wjcarter on Twitter.
