The fate of the 12 remaining contestants on the U.S. version of The X Factor will be in the hands of the viewers starting Nov. 2., and they’ll now have a new way to support their favorite performer: Twitter direct message-enabled voting.  Though other shows have used Twitter to create buzz, The X Factor will become the first TV competition to tally DM votes to help determine a winner.  “The X Factor has raised the bar for innovative television with its use of Twitter,” says Chloe Sladden, Twitter’s director of content and programming. “We’re thrilled to see the creators of The X Factor push the envelope further by being the first television show to formalize this phenomenon through Twitter voting.”  Social media and technology continue to change the public’s TV-watching experience, but the evolution of social TV has affected competition shows the most.  For example, American Idol let viewers vote on the show’s Facebook Page during season 10. The Voice — a new singing competition that became a 24/7 social media conversation earlier this year — allowed viewers to vote by buying the contestants’ songs on iTunes. And design competition Project Runway let fans use Twitter hashtags to vote for a “Fan Favorite” every episode  The shows hope the new voting methods spark social buzz that will lead to better ratings.  The X Factor offers four other voting methods: Viewers can call, text, go to the show’s website or — if you’re a Verizon subscriber with an Android device — use The Xtra Factor App.  “Launching touch screen voting on Verizon’s The Xtra Factor App and the new voting on Twitter is really exciting,” says the show’s star judge Simon Cowell. “I love that the audience has more and more choice in the way that they can vote.”  To vote on Twitter, viewers must follow @TheXFactorUSA and DM their votes to that handle. Regular tweets will not be tallied. The X Factor has set a limit of 50 votes for viewers voting on the show’s website and on Twitter, while voting via SMS, SMS in-app and telephone is unlimited.  For a full list of contestants’ Twitter handles, click here.
Unlike with other TV competitions like "American Idol" or "The Voice," viewers of "The X Factor" can now vote on Twitter through Direct Messages.