Tamron Hall Says Being a TV Junkie Prepared Her to Be a Talk Show Host

The pool of people who can call themselves talk show hosts is very, very small, and Tamron Hall is keenly aware of that. “For me, it’s not about being highbrow or low,” Hall says about the Tamron Hall Show. “We are a celebrity daytime talk show, of course, but we have real people layered in.” And that’s part of the reason why Hall’s four-time Emmy winning show has been a success. “I don’t care if you are famous. I don’t care if you’re a writer. I don’t care what it is. I just need you to come to talk.” But the success of the show wasn’t guaranteed. “On paper people were like, ‘Oh, the lady that got fired,’” Hall said, referring to her departure from NBC’s Today show in 2017. But Hall’s transition from journalist to talk show host was seamless, finding the balance between reporting and the emotion in a guest’s story. “My role as a journalist is to walk into the room and not judge.” And when someone comes “to play,” that’s when “it’s such an exhilarating [job], it’s so fun.” Visit Newsweek.com to learn more about the podcasts we offer and to catch up on the latest news. While you’re there, subscribe to Newsweek’s ‘For the Culture newsletter. Follow H. Alan Scott on everything at @HAlanScott. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.