Teyona Wins Top Model; Porizkova Fired

(NEWSER) - Tight-lipped Simon Cowell doesn’t want to “get in the middle” of execs and departed American Idol judge Paula Abdul, he tells Extra, but he does say things are “different” without her. “I miss her, of course,” he says. Asked how the new lineup compares to the old, Cowell is characteristically blunt. “It's like comparing a carrot to a banana,” he says. “They are different.” More»

Former majority leader can't fall back on political tricks

(NEWSER) - Tom DeLay had some clever moves to help him become majority leader—but his bag of tricks won’t help him much on the dance floor. In Newsweek, Katie Connolly lists a few techniques Dancing With the Stars fans won’t stand for. He can’t:

• Redistrict to score more votes. That might have worked in Texas, but “Unfortunately for DeLay, this electorate isn't easily gerrymandered.”

Host of 2 TV shows produces a third to 'instill self-esteem in young girls'

(NEWSER) - The supermodel who hosts two TV shows and sits front-row center at fashion galas insists she is frugal and unhip, but ambitious. "I want power,” 34-year-old Tyra Banks says in a New York Times profile. “The power to make change.” Savvy and outrageous, the follower of Martha Stewart now has young girls listening—and watching. More»

Says Banks definitely saw Top Model promo

(NEWSER) - Tyra Banks is full of it, says Janice Dickinson. Banks, who recently apologized for an America’s Next Top Model promo in which she appeared to gush over an ultra-skinny model, claimed she hadn’t seen the spot before it aired. BS, claims Dickinson, a former Top Model judge. “Excuse me, but Tyra is the executive producer of that show,” she tells Access Hollywood . “She has her finger on everything. No, I don’t believe it." More»

But she apologizes for the tiny-waist promo

(NEWSER) - Tyra Banks apologized for a controversial America's Next Top Model promo in which she appeared to gush over a super-skinny model, but says she wants to expand "the definition of beauty—EVERY kind of beauty"—including the extremely tall, thin kind. The model in the promo "was experiencing her own internal struggles with her body, and the cruelty she faces on a daily basis directly related to the way she looks," Banks explains on her website , adding that an upcoming episode will deal with "beauty, body image, and bullying." More»