What Whoopi Means For The View

As announced earlier today, Whoopi Goldberg was named the new moderator at The View. Whoopi is a great addition to the panel and I'm saddened I will not be in the US when the Oscar/Tony/Emmy/Grammy award winner takes the seat once held by Meredith Vierra and Rosie O'Donnell. The comedienne's inclusion as moderator will serve the show quite well. Whoopi Goldberg is a big name star and while she is not known for being as controversial as the former Queen of Nice Rosie O'Donnell...she doesn't come completely without baggage. Weight Watchers fired her as a spokesperson in 2004 after Whoopi criticized President Bush. Goldberg is outspoken and she'll fit in well. However, unless she really steps it up, The View shouldn't expect to see ratings as high as they were when Rosie was famously feuding with everyone from Donald Trump, Kelly Ripa, and, of course, panelist Elizabeth Hasselbeck. On choosing Goldberg, Barbara Walters probably did not want a repeat of last year, which most definitely must have caused the legendary broadcast journalist some serious stress, so Whoopi is a perfect choice as a big name who won't stir the pot as vigorously as Rosie did. Not to cause Ms. Walters more agita, I hope Whoopi does push the limits and speak her mind very loudly. While I have always been a fan of the show, Rosie O'Donnell made the show relevant and newsworthy. Rosie helped panelist Joy Behar step up her game as well and Behar's passion has really shone through since Rosie joined (and now exited) the panel. The View cannot take a step backward.

Now The View has typically had five people on the panel. Barbara Walters did not do the show daily when the panel had five women. With Star Jones Reynold's abrupt departure last year after ABC did not renew her contract and O'Donnel's departure, Barbara Walters has rarely missed a day. She especially has not missed a day since O'Donnell left because that would leave Joy and Elizabeth alone with a guest host and, more importantly, the guest hosts have been serving as auditions to permanently fill the vacated seat. The most frequent guest host this past year has been comedienne Sherri Shepherd. Shepherd is hilarious and definitely a great guest host when she fills in. Her chemistry with the other hosts has been spot-on and Sherri even tried to squash the fight between Rosie and Elizabeth, which Barbara must have approved of, that led to O'Donnell's early exit. Insiders were already leaking information that Sherri Shepherd had been offered a spot on the panel alongside Whoopi Goldberg and that negotiations had started.

However, today saw the announcement of only Whoopi Goldberg as moderator. There was no mention of the other empty seat. No offense to Sherri Shepherd, but they wouldn't announce a big name like Whoopi Goldberg before they announced Sherri Shepherd as a new panelist. Therefore, I have the feeling things maybe did not go as planned for producers and we aren't going to see a colorful and comic (Shepherd's addition would make for three comedians on the panel) group come Labor Day. Now, reports and rumors are being circulated that negotiations with Shepherd fell through and she will not be joining the panel permanently. Sources say that Shepherd was asking for $2 million and that the show was not willing to give her that. Goldberg's salary is reportedly going to be $2 million and, clearly, Whoopi is a much bigger and known name than Sherri Shepherd so I think Shepherd asking for $2 million is a bit outrageous and I don't know why she thought they would pay her that much. I doubt that even Joy Behar (who's been with the show since the beginning) and Elizabeth Hasselbeck get paid that much. Who knows? This is all a bit of rumors for now and come Fall, the panel may very well include Sherri Shepherd. If they choose to go with someone else my vote goes to Kathy Griffin, who would really make the show catch fire and the combination of her and Whoopi would make the show skyrocket in the ratings department. Kathy, though named a front-runner, seems like a long shot to me since Barbara Walters does not seem to be a fan of the outrageous My Life on the D-List red-head at all. But who knows if Barbara will put aside her distaste for some stellar ratings. Sherri Shepherd...I love you girl but let's all move aside for Miss Kathy Griffin. All in all, we should be in for a fun ride once The View starts its next season in September.