America's Got Talent (season 7)
The seventh season of America's Got Talent, an American talent show competition, began broadcasting in the United States during 2012, from May 14 to September 13 on NBC; due to the network's live coverage of the 2012 Summer Olympics, the program was forced to take a two week-hiatus between July and August to avoid clashing with this. Prior to production on the new season beginning, Piers Morgan left the program following the previous season, leading to production staff hiring Howard Stern as his replacement. However, as a condition for his involvement, the live rounds of the competition were moved from their venue in Los Angeles to a new site in Newark, New Jersey. Alongside a change of judge, the show also underwent a visual makeover to improve its presentation, as well as making use of its new live round venue to attract a larger audience.
The seventh season was won by dog tricks act Olate Dogs, with stand-up comedian Tom Cotter finishing in second, and earth harpist William Close placing third. During its broadcast, the season averaged around 10.02 million viewers. The involvement of an army sergeant in this year's competition caused controversy after their appearance was broadcast, over a claim they made that was later refuted by their superiors and the media.
Season Overview
Auditions for the seventh season's competition took place across Winter - mid-Spring 2012, with production staff holding the main auditions that would be filmed within the cities of New York, Los Angeles, Tampa Bay, Austin, St. Louis, and San Francisco; additional auditions were held in Washington, D.C.and Charlotte, though were not filmed.Following the conclusion of the sixth season's broadcast, Piers Morgan began contemplating his involvement with America's Got Talent, due to his increasing work schedule on other projects by that time. In November 2011, despite having signed a three-year contract the previous year, Morgan was forced to quit the program in order to focus on his commitment to producing Piers Morgan Tonight for CNN. His departure meant that production staff had to seek out his replacement before work on the seventh season could begin, with radio personality Howard Stern chosen in December to replace Morgan. However, as Stern had commitments to his SiriusXM radio show in New York that he could not abandon, the producers agreed that as a condition for his involvement, the live round venue would be relocated from its original site in Los Angeles, to the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark, New Jersey, thus ensuring his work schedule was manageable.
While the use of the Performing Arts Center meant that audiences attending live rounds could be much larger than in previous years, the change in venue also allowed executive producer Simon Cowell to have the program undergo a significant "top-to-bottom makeover" of its presentation - amongst these included new graphics, a new intro, and a new theme song for America's Got Talent, alongside an update to set pieces. A significant change was the appearance of the judges' desk, which was re-modeled to appear similar in design to that used on Britain's Got Talent. Despite the change in live round venue, Stern gave clearance to the producers that he could work on the "Vegas Verdicts" segment within Las Vegas without any issue. Alongside these changes, the producers also had to take into account the 2012 Summer Olympics that year - as the sporting event would receive live coverage from the network, the episode scheduling had to include a two week hiatus between 27 July to 12 August, so as to avoid America's Got Talent clashing with this.
Of the participants who auditioned for this season, 62 secured a place in the live quarter-finals, with twelve quarter-finalists in each one - ten of these would later be given a second chance in the Wildcard quarter-final, after losing their initial quarter-final. Around 23 of these advanced to and were split between the two semi-finals - an additional semi-finalist was added in at the last minute - with 6 semi-finalists securing a place in the finals, which consisted of a single stage and not multiple rounds. The following below lists the results of each participant's overall performance in this season:
| Participant | Age | Genre | Act | From | Quarter-Final | Result |
| 7 in Unison | 14–15 | Dance | Dance Troupe | Yorba Linda, California | 5 | |
| 787 Crew | 19–31 | Dance | Dance Crew | San Juan, Puerto Rico | 1 | |
| Academy of Villains | Dance | Hip-hop Dance Troupe | San Francisco | 5 | ||
| All Beef Patty | 38 | Singing | Singing Drag Queen | New York City | 3 | |
| All That! | 23–36 | Dance | Clogging Dance Troupe | Myrtle Beach, South Carolina | 4 | |
| All Wheel Sports | 18–35 | Acrobatics / Danger | BMX Action Team | Los Angeles | 3 | |
| American BMX Stunt Team | 20–44 | Acrobatics / Danger | BMX Stunt Team | Durham, North Carolina | 1 | |
| Andrew De Leon | 19 | Singing | Opera Singer | Kyle, Texas | 6 | |
| Aurora Light Painters | 38–46 | Dance / Variety | Light-painting Troupe | San Francisco | 2 | |
| Bandbaz Brothers | 34, 59 | Acrobatics | Balancing Duo | Las Vegas | 6 | |
| Ben Blaque | 33 | Danger | Crossbow Performer | Branson, Missouri | 2 | |
| Big Barry | 70 | Singing | Singer | Fort Lauderdale, Florida | 2 | |
| Bria Kelly | 16 | Singing | Country Singer | Virginia Beach, Virginia | 5 | |
| Cast in Bronze | 61 | Music | Carillon Musician | St. Peters, Pennsylvania | 5 | |
| Clint Carvalho and His Extreme Parrots | 52 | Animal | Parrot Trainer | Las Vegas | 5 | |
| Cristin Sandu | 18 | Danger | Balancing Performer | Las Vegas | 3 | |
| Danielle Stallings | 14 | Singing | Singer | Richmond, Virginia | 2 | |
| David "The Bullet" Smith | 34 | Danger | Human Cannonball Performer | Englewood, Florida | 4 | |
| David Garibaldi and His CMYK's | 26–30 | Variety | Art Performers | Sacramento | 1 | ' |
| Distinguished Men of Brass | 24–60 | Music | Marching Band | Tampa, Florida | 1 | |
| Donovan & Rebecca | 44, 36 | Acrobatics | Acrobatic Aerialists | Stony Brook, New York | 2 | |
| Drew Erwin | 16 | Singing / Music | Singer & Musician | Arlington, Tennessee | 5 | |
| Edon | 14 | Singing | Singer | Chicago | 1 | |
| Elusive | 21 | Dance | B-boy Dancer | Austin, Texas | 3 | |
| Eric & Olivia | 20 | Singing / Music | Singer & Guitarist Duo | Austin, Texas | 4 | |
| Eric Buss | 37 | Variety | Novelty act Entertainer | Tucson, Arizona | 5 | |
| Eric Dittelman | 26 | Magic | Mentalist | Boston | 4 | |
| Hawley Magic | 30 | Magic | Magician & Illusionists | Shelby, North Carolina | 2 | |
| Horse | 25 | Variety | Groin attack taker | Harrisburg, Pennsylvania | 4 | |
| Inspire the Fire | 13–29 | Singing / Dance | Singing Dance Troupe | Charlotte, North Carolina | 3 | |
| Jacob Williams | 23 | Comedy | Stand-up Comedian | Chicago | 3 | |
| Jake Wesley Rogers | 15 | Singing / Music | Singer & Pianist | Ozark, Missouri | 3 | |
| Jarrett & Raja | 39, 32 | Comedy / Magic | Comic Illusionists | Las Vegas | 1 | |
| Joe Castillo | 64 | Variety | Sand Artist | Lexington, Kentucky | 4 | ' |
| Lightwire Theater | 25–43 | Dance | Glow-light Dance Group | New Orleans | 3 | |
| Lil' Starr | 6 | Dance | Tap Dancer | Chino, California | 1 | |
| Lindsey Norton | 17 | Dance | Dancer | Tampa, Florida | 4 | |
| LionDanceMe | 14–35 | Danger / Animal / Dance | Lion Dance Danger Act | San Francisco | 2 | |
| Lisa Clark Dancers | 14–18 | Dance | Dance Troupe | Suisun City, California | 2 | |
| Melinda Hill | 39 | Comedy | Stand-up Comedian | Los Angeles | 5 | |
| Michael Nejad | 55 | Music / Variety | Household Musician | San Jose, California | 1 | |
| Nikki Jensen | 25 | Singing / Music | Singer & Guitarist | Austin, Texas | 1 | |
| Olate Dogs | 19, 55 | Animal | Dog Tricks Act | New York City | 4 | ' |
| Reverse Order | Music | Rock Band | Hackettstown, New Jersey | 5 | ||
| Rock Star Juggler Mike Price | 33 | Variety | Juggler | Las Vegas | 3 | |
| Romeo Dance Cheetah | 30 | Music | Air Guitarist | Chicago | 5 | |
| Rudy Coby | 48 | Magic | Illusionist | Los Angeles | 5 | |
| Sebastien "El Charro de Oro" | 10–30 | Singing / Music | Mariachi Singer & Band | San Antonio, Texas | 4 | |
| Shanice & Maurice Hayes | 18, 62 | Singing | Father & Daughter Duet | Kansas City, Missouri | 1 | |
| Spencer Horsman | 26 | Magic / Danger | Escape Artist | Baltimore, Maryland | 3 | |
| The All Ways | 19–22 | Music | Rock Band | New York City | 2 | |
| The Magic of Puck | 46 | Magic | Comic Illusionist | Roosevelt, New York | 5 | |
| The Scott Brothers | 47, 48 | Dance | Pop Dance Duo | Las Vegas | 1 | |
| The Untouchables | 8–13 | Dance | Latin Dance Troupe | Miami | 3 | ' |
| Tim Hockenberry | 50 | Singing / Music | Singer & Pianist | San Francisco | 2 | |
| Todd Oliver | 53 | Comedy / Animal | Dog Ventriloquist Act | Branson, Missouri | 1 | |
| Tom Cotter | 48 | Comedy | Stand-up Comedian | Stony Point, New York | 2 | ' |
| Turf | 21 | Dance / Vairety | Dancing Contortionist | San Francisco | 2 | |
| Ulysses | 49 | Singing | Singer | Statesville, North Carolina | 4 | |
| Unity in Motion | 11–16 | Dance | Dancing Contortionist Group | Cape May, New Jersey | 4 | |
| William Close | 42 | Music | Earth Harpist | Los Angeles | 4 | ' |
| Wordspit and the Illest! | 20–27 | Music | Hip-hop & Rock Band | New York City | 3 |
- Ages denoted in this column pertain to a participant age in their final performance for this season.
- These participants were entered into the Wildcard quarter-final after losing their initial quarter-final.
Quarter-final Summary
Quarter-final 1 (July 2)
Guest Performers, Results Show: Cast of Cirque du Soleil: Zarkana, and will.i.amQuarter-final 2 (July 10)
Guest Performers, Results Show: Gavin DeGraw, and TRACESQuarter-final 3 (July 17)
Guest Performers, Results Show: Ashleigh and Pudsey, and Havana BrownQuarter-final 4 (July 24)
Guest Performers, Results Show: Cher Lloyd, and the cast of Once- For health & safety reasons, David Smith had to perform outside the studio; the judges were required to view the performance in person, and used hand-carried signs in place of their buzzers.
Quarter-final 5 - YouTube Round (August 14)
- Due to complications, Cast In Bronze had to perform outside the studio; the judges were required to be in person to view the performance, and used hand-carried signs in place of their buzzers.
Quarter-final 6 Wild Card Round (August 21)
Semifinal Summary
Semi-final 1 (August 28)
Guest Performers, Results Show: Neon Trees, and Steve HarveySemi-final 2 (September 4)
Guest Performers, Results Show: Train, Nathan Burton, and Haunted by Heroes with Dee Snider- Due to live coverage of the NFL game between the Dallas Cowboys and the New York Giants, the results episode was aired the day after to avoid conflicting with it.
Finals (September 12)
| Finalist | Order | Act | Result |
| David Garibaldi and His CMYK's | 1 | Art Performers | 4th |
| Tom Cotter | 2 | Stand-up Comedian | 2nd |
| The Untouchables | 3 | Latin Dance Troupe | 6th |
| Joe Castillo | 4 | Sand Artist | 5th |
| William Close | 5 | Earth Harpist | 3rd |
| Olate Dogs | 6 | Dog Tricks Act | 1st |
Ratings
The following ratings are based upon those published by Nielsen Media Research after this season's broadcast:| Show | Episode | First air date | Rating | Share | Viewers | Timeslot rank | Nightly rank | Weekly rank |
| 1 | Los Angeles and St. Louis Auditions | May 14, 2012 | 3.7 | 10 | 10.48 | 1 | 2 | 16 |
| 2 | San Francisco Auditions | May 15, 2012 | 3.4 | 10 | 10.58 | 2 | 2 | 15 |
| 3 | New York Auditions | May 21, 2012 | 3.2 | 9 | 9.66 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| 4 | New York Auditions | May 22, 2012 | 3.3 | 9 | 9.44 | 1 | 2 | 7 |
| 5 | Tampa Bay Auditions | May 28, 2012 | 2.8 | 8 | 9.96 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 6 | St. Louis Auditions | May 29, 2012 | 3.7 | 10 | 11.51 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 7 | Austin Auditions | June 4, 2012 | 3.3 | 10 | 12.22 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 8 | Austin Auditions | June 5, 2012 | 3.5 | 11 | 12.55 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 9 | Tampa Bay Auditions | June 12, 2012 | 3.0 | 8 | 11.18 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| 10 | Final Auditions | June 18, 2012 | 2.9 | 9 | 11.43 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 11 | Las Vegas Week | June 25, 2012 | 3.0 | 8 | 10.45 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 12 | Las Vegas Week | June 26, 2012 | 3.2 | 9 | 11.67 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 13 | Las Vegas Week | June 27, 2012 | 2.8 | 9 | 10.66 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 14 | Top 48, Week 1 | July 2, 2012 | 2.9 | 8 | 10.19 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 15 | Top 48, Week 1 | July 3, 2012 | 2.3 | 8 | 9.32 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 16 | Top 48, Week 2 | July 10, 2012 | 2.8 | 9 | 10.69 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 17 | Top 48, Week 2 | July 11, 2012 | 2.0 | 6 | 8.08 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| 18 | Top 48, Week 3 | July 17, 2012 | 2.6 | 8 | 10.17 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 19 | Top 48, Week 3 | July 18, 2012 | 2.0 | 6 | 7.61 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
| 20 | Top 48, Week 4 | July 24, 2012 | 2.7 | 8 | 10.43 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 21 | Top 48, Week 4 | July 25, 2012 | 2.2 | 6 | 8.76 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
| 22 | YouTube Snapple Special | August 14, 2012 | 2.8 | 8 | 9.97 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 23 | YouTube Snapple Special | August 15, 2012 | 2.3 | 6 | 8.48 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
| 24 | Wild Card | August 21, 2012 | 2.5 | 8 | 9.90 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 25 | Wild Card | August 22, 2012 | 2.3 | 7 | 8.60 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 26 | Semifinals, Round 1 | August 28, 2012 | 2.5 | 7 | 9.89 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 27 | Semifinals, Round 1 | August 29, 2012 | 2.2 | 6 | 8.34 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 28 | Semifinals, Round 2 | September 4, 2012 | 2.4 | 7 | 8.93 | 1 | 1 | 8 |
| 29 | Semifinals, Round 2 | September 6, 2012 | 1.9 | 6 | 7.87 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 30 | Finals | September 12, 2012 | 2.9 | 8 | 11.05 | 1 | 1 | 12 |
| 31 | Finale | September 13, 2012 | 2.4 | 7 | 10.59 | 1 | 1 | 19 |
Controversies
False Military ClaimDuring auditions made for the seventh season, the involvement of a Minnesota National Guard sergeant Tim Poe caused controversy due to a claim that was later discredited by his superiors and a media investigation. Poe, who was attempting to audition for a place in the contest, made a claim that an audible stutter he had was the resultment of an injury sustained while serving with the country's forces in the War in Afghanistan, producing documentation afterwards that backed his claim. However, both the Associated Press and Minnesota National Guard refuted his evidence, citing that his documentation was not verifiable and that he therefore did not receive his condition as a result of being injured in Afghanistan. Although Poe advanced no further, production staff would have had to face the question of disqualifying him from advancing into later stages for submitting a lie that had been broadcast on national television.