Entertainment | X Factor Simon Fires Practically Everyone From X Factor Paula Abdul, Nicole Scherzinger, Steve Jones all get the boot By Evann Gastaldo Posted Jan 31, 2012 9:02 AM CST Copied In this Sept. 14, 2011 image from Fox, judges, from left, Nicole Sherzinger, Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and LA Reid attend "The X Factor" screening at the Arclight Cinerama Dome in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/FOX, Frank Micelotta, FILE) It was a "bloodbath" at X Factor yesterday, Nikki Finke writes at Deadline, with host Steve Jones and judges Nicole Scherzinger and Paula Abdul all getting the ax. Apparently Simon Cowell himself made the decision to clean house, according to the Hollywood Reporter. Cowell and LA Reid are the only two judges who will return for the second season of the reality competition, which has garnered not-great ratings. Insiders tell the Reporter Abdul was seen as "irrelevant to the mix," and add that Cowell wants bigger celebrities on the panel. Read These Next RFK Jr. suggests antidepressants to blame after shooting. A Social Security whistleblower says retaliation made him quit. Isolated tribe members show up in an unexpected place. A new possible clue in the hunt for Travis Decker. Report an error