The Shady Side Of These Daytime Talk Show Hosts
Late night talk show hosts are known for their barbs and jabs, often at the expense of famous politicians, actors, musicians, and other celebrities. But when it comes to daytime TV, the atmosphere can be much warmer, with many hosts exhibiting a seemingly endless amount of cheerfulness and an enjoyable amenable demeanor. People like Kelly Clarkson and Katie Couric are known for their perkiness, and the lightness of daytime TV lends well to these affable personality types.
That is not to say that every daytime talk show host is nice. In fact, there are more than a few hosts who are incredibly shady, either on the air or behind the scenes or in both of these settings. From cultivating toxic work environments to having petty fights with their co-hosts, some daytime personalities keep their true selves hidden from the audience. Others let their shade roam free right in front of viewers, taking aim at co-hosts, celebrity guests, and even audience members. Here is a look at the shady side of some of the biggest daytime television talk show hosts, past and present.
Sherri Shepherd shaded two big name hosts
In 2022, Sherri Shepherd got her own talk show, "Sherri," which serves to function as a replacement for "The Wendy Williams Show." But even before "Sherri," most people knew Shepherd for her acting or her time spent co-hosting "The View," which she did from 2007 to 2014. She kept a lot of her shadiness under wraps while on "The View," making waves instead for her controversial viewpoints, like being a flat earther and not knowing ancient religious history. But now that she has her own platform, Shepherd seems to have become emboldened. In particular, she has taken aim at two other daytime hosts: Wendy Williams and Jennifer Hudson.
It makes sense that Shepherd would shade Hudson, given that they are in direct competition with their daytime talkers. On "Sherri," she told a story about competing for a specific A-list guest. "I called my producer, my super-producer, Patrick, right here," she explained. "Patrick, who's my super-producer, so don't be trying to take him, Jennifer Hudson! Leave him alone!"
Shepherd's jab at the iconic Wendy Williams was subtler, but even harsher. Williams was insulted when Shepherd seemingly threw a dig her way in a Daily Mail interview. "Let's be clear, I'm not a mean person at all!," Shepherd said. "As a celebrity myself, I know what it's like to not feel safe appearing on a show or hoping a host doesn't try to have a gotcha-moment with you. It will be a celebrity-friendly zone on Sherri."
Meghan McCain can't stop the shade
Meghan McCain left "The View" in 2021, but that has not stopped her from continuously making headlines for her comments about her former co-hosts and the show itself. On numerous occasions, she has called out the show for its work culture, which she has deemed venomous. "In my four years there, I was the target of plenty of shade —too much to even begin to recount — and then I also experienced more toxic, direct and purposeful hostility," she wrote in her memoir, "Bad Republican." And that's just one of the many unkind things she had to say about the show in her book.
McCain has also taken aim at specific co-hosts. When Ana Navarro and Sunny Hostin tested positive for COVID-19 while the show was on air, McCain's Twitter response was interpreted by many to be a dig at the show. The since-deleted tweet said, "Trust your instincts, kids" with a GIF from a Clint Eastwood flick. Even before she left the show, Decider picked up the story when McCain claimed on air that Navarro only faked being Republican because she voted for Joe Biden. And in her book, McCain went in on Whoopi Goldberg particularly hard. "I found her open disdain for me more and more difficult to manage as the years went on and it became more frequent," she wrote. Despite her capacity for throwing shade, McCain is not a fan of being on the receiving end, often reacting poorly.
The View co-hosts have taken many jabs at each other
Meghan McCain is far from the only co-host of "The View" to throw some shade, as long-time viewers know that the table can morph into a verbal war zone from a friendly group of colleagues at the drop of a hot topic. So, while we can't get into all of the nastiness and pettiness that we have seen over the show's many, many seasons, we can certainly highlight a few shady moments. Like that time in November 2022 when Joy Behar called Sunny Hostin vindictive in a passing comment, prompting The Sun to publish a whole article about it.
There have been plenty of full-on fights, but we want to focus on the subtler insults. Barbara Walters was a pro at these, like telling Elizabeth Hasselback to "calm down, dear" in the most patronizing way ever. And Joy Behar perfected it when she responded to Meghan McCain with, "I did not miss you, zero," after McCain's return from maternity leave. Perhaps one of the shadiest moves the show has ever seen — or at least its most awkward and tense — happened way back in the day, when controversial Star Jones announced her departure from the show live on air, to the shock of the other hosts who had no idea she was about to discuss her firing.
Whoopi Goldberg has defended some shady people
Whoopi Goldberg might only co-host her show, but she is such a strong force that she deserves her own mention on our list. Not only does she have a dominant voice at the table, but she also tends to use that voice to defend questionable people and espouse controversial opinions about world events. The most recent of these instances occurred when Goldberg claimed that the Holocaust was not about race, despite the fact that Nazis specifically targeted Jews based upon their heritage. Goldberg was suspended for weeks over her comments, but has since apologized.
Goldberg has also made waves by defending some pretty terrible people, from Roman Polanski to Mel Gibson — even Bill Cosby at one point. Polanski drugged and raped a 13-year-old girl in 1977, and Goldberg's take on the rape was pretty horrific. "I know it wasn't rape-rape ... It was something else but I don't believe it was rape-rape" she said on "The View." She also defended actor Gibson after an ex-girlfriend of his released racist and sexist recordings. "I don't like what he did here, but I know Mel, and I know he's not a racist," Goldberg said, despite the recordings and Gibson's long history of problematic comments about minority groups. "He may be a bonehead ... I can't sit and say that he's a racist, having spent time with him in my house with my kids."
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Rosie O'Donnell's biggest feud was with a president
From her early days as a standup all the way through until now, Rosie O'Donnell has had a huge career. And though she does it all — acting, producing, writing, owning a cruise line — O'Donnell is perhaps best known for her hosting duties. She hosted the immensely popular "The Rosie O'Donnell Show" from 1996 to 2002, and twice took a stab at "The View," first in 2006 to 2007, and then again in 2014 to 2015. Neither of O'Donnell's tenures at "The View" were especially long, and neither went very well, as she was often the subject of controversy and the source of fights. Still, her biggest feud has happened off the TV screen.
O'Donnell has feuded with numerous famous folks, but her rivalry with ex-President Donald Trump has been going on for many years. In an oral history piece for Vulture, O'Donnell said she refused to interview Trump on her talk show, even before they really got into it publicly, because she thought he was phony. On Trump's end, the issues started when O'Donnell was on "The View," which the comedian confirmed in a 2017 appearance on "Late Night with Seth Meyers." O'Donnell's first time taking jabs at Trump on the show was in 2006, when she reacted to his defense of a Miss USA winner who was enveloped in scandal. Her comments about his money, career, and personal life prompted Trump to respond, telling People that O'Donnell is a "loser" — and it's only gone downhill since then.
Ellen DeGeneres has a long history of being mean
Rosie O'Donnell once shared that she refused to go on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" because DeGeneres hurt her feelings so badly when she claimed in an interview that the two were not friends, according to "Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen." While that is not a particularly nice thing to say, it is the tip of the iceberg when it comes to DeGeneres' mean-spirited comments. One look at YouTube reveals numerous montages of the host being cruel to people, and behind-the-scenes accounts from staffers have suggested that DeGeneres isn't exactly peachy off screen, either. A Buzzfeed News investigation revealed a toxic work environment at "Ellen," with one ex-staffer saying "That 'be kind' bulls**t only happens when the cameras are on. It's all for show."
DeGeneres' toxicity is not just aimed at her staffers, but also her audience and guests. She has made fun of audience members' financial health and intelligence, and insulted fans' art and tattoos on the air. Even being a big-name celebrity won't protect you, since she has critiqued Dakota Johnson's skirt length, called Naomi Osaka out for being too quiet, and treated vlogger Nikkie Tutorials so badly (DeGeneres would not even shake her hand) that she created a whole YouTube video on it. On at least two occasions, celebrities have also called out the host for lying on air about not being invited to their events. It happened in February 2019 with Priyanka Chopra and again in November 2019 with Dakota Johnson.
Kelly Ripa is not as nice as she seems on TV
Just like Ellen DeGeneres, Kelly Ripa has also been called out for being fake nice for television ratings. Ripa rose to fame as an actor, particularly for her work on the soap opera "All My Children," but she has had her greatest influence as a talk show host. Ripa began hosting "Live" in 2001, and has cycled through multiple co-hosts including Regis Philbin, Michael Strahan, and Ryan Seacrest. The continued success of the show has relied largely upon Ripa's relatability and her sunny demeanor, but the latter might just be an act, according to some reports. Amongst her misdeeds are passive-aggressive digs and petty revenge tactics, like not letting Ryan Seacrest appear on former co-host Michael Strahan's show, "Good Morning America."
Strahan is on Ripa's no-go list because she was reportedly taken aback by his exit from "Live with Kelly and Michael," per Page Six. Insiders said things like "Kelly sees this as the ultimate betrayal," and "There's been a total Ripa meltdown," and Ripa even called in sick to spite Strahan. Another Page Six report suggested that the co-hosts had long been having issues, and in a show of immaturity, Ripa wore a jacket with the word "freedom" on it before Strahan's final day. In addition to Strahan, former co-host Philbin also expressed that Ripa reacted badly when he left the show, even though he did so to retire.
Sharon Osbourne has a list of problematic behavior
Sharon Osbourne has had a hand in her husband Ozzy Osbourne's career, but it was not until their family's MTV reality show "The Osbournes," that she really peeked out from Ozzy's shadow. She has followed that up with a number of high-profile gigs, including being a judge on "The X Factor" and "America's Got Talent." She has also appeared on a number of television series — for example, as a contestant on "The Celebrity Apprentice" or as herself on "Days of Our Lives." One of her biggest jobs has been in daytime TV, serving as a co-host of "The Talk" for more than a decade. Osbourne also had her own short-lived daytime talker, "The Sharon Osbourne Show."
Osbourne appeared on "The Talk" beginning with its inception in 2010, and she left in a huff of bad press when she "resigned" (but was probably fired, given the investigation into her found wrongdoing, per The Hollywood Reporter) in 2021, after allegations of racism and bullying on the set. A heated discussion about racism with co-host Sheryl Underwood — after she tweeted in defense of Piers Morgan, who walked off a set after being critiqued for comments about Meghan Markle — is what ultimately started Osbourne's demise, but the truth is that she had been acting shady long before that. Former co-host Holly Robinson Peete tweeted in 2021 that she was let go after Osborne called her too "ghetto," and she threatened to quit unless "The Talk" fired Marie Osmond in 2020.
Tamar Braxton has thrown shade at many targets
Tamar Braxton is known for being super shady and, at times, downright brutal with that mouth of hers. Her targets are also quite varied, so no one is safe — not even family members or production teams. For instance, Braxton was called out by her nephew after posting a shady message on her own sister, Traci Braxton's, birthday. In a screen capture posted by The Shade Room, Tamar can be seen holding up an award claiming it was "Tamar Braxton Day" shortly after wishing her sister a happy birthday. This is not the only time she has insulted Traci, either. In a now-deleted comment, she responded to a fan's wish that Traci would get a Grammy Award with, "Do the Grammys have a duet with auto tune category yet? Cause...[chair emoji] [thumbs down emoji]."
Braxton's shade extends beyond her own family, like when she reportedly defended producer Carlos King against her enemy Kandi Burruss, with whom Braxton appeared on Season 2 of "Celebrity Big Brother." She has also insulted both of her big shows, daytime talker "The Real" and reality series "Braxton Family Values," including calling the latter fake and saying she hates it on Twitter in May 2019. Fans have also called her out for a passive aggressive birthday message for singer Monica, and for suggesting (by way of a comment section) that her "The Real" co-hosts are deceptive.
Many felt Oprah Winfrey went too far in an interview
When it comes to daytime television hosts, or even just celebrities in general, Oprah Winfrey is up near the very top of the list for most beloved. But even celebrity royalty make mistakes, and Winfrey's had a few. One of her biggest scandals was the way she handled author James Frey when he appeared on her show after endorsing his memoir, "A Million Little Pieces," published in 2003. Frey's book had become a bestseller — the second best-selling book of 2005 — after Winfrey made it an Oprah's Book Club selection in September 2005. Frey first appeared on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" to promote the book, but when he was invited back early in 2006, the mood was quite different.
Winfrey, livid because a report from The Smoking Gun had recently revealed Frey exaggerated and/or lied about some details of his criminal history and jail time in his memoir, took Frey to task in front of her live and at-home audience. Though Winfrey offered her support a few days later in a phone call during his "Larry King Live" appearance, she sang a different tune on her January 26, 2006, show. She said the author duped her and that she felt he betrayed readers and went so hard on him that many felt sympathy for the man. Three years later, Winfrey reached out to apologize to Frey for the excessive and cruel public berating she inflicted.
Dr. Phil's staffers have revealed terrible details
"The Ellen DeGeneres Show" is not the only daytime talk show that cultivated a toxic atmosphere behind the scenes. "Dr. Phil," the talk show hosted by Phil McGraw that began in 2002, has also been painted as a terrible place to work. In 2022, current and former employees revealed, by way of a Buzzfeed News investigation, that verbal abuse was common on the show's set, and that the environment of the workplace promoted fear, intimidation, and racism. McGraw himself is often quite aggressive with his guests, so we can only imagine his demeanor when the cameras are off.
Dr. Phil is also quite shady himself for a variety of reasons. For starters, he has not been licensed to practice medicine in Texas since 2006 and was never even licensed in California, where he films his show, per TMZ. And then there is the fact that his sensationalized approach to psychology has much more to do with ratings than ethical considerations for his "patients" on the show. Even before 2006, he was being called out by organizations like the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill. "Dr. Phil's conduct is serious enough to warrant investigation by a relevant board of licensure," the organization wrote after one particular show, via the Washington Post. "To the degree that he seemed to offer a definitive diagnosis, including a pharmacological assessment, without careful evaluation or referral, he also may be subject to legal sanctions for practicing medicine without a license."
Wendy Williams has made many verbal missteps
We could probably say that Wendy Williams reigns as daytime TV's "queen of mean," given her long history of offensive and inappropriate comments, but since she can be just as funny as she can be cruel, it is possible that she is only that way for television. In any case, Williams is known for her take-no-prisoners approach and her tendency to verbally jab other celebrities, even when they are sometimes sitting right across from her. When Williams' talker ended in 2022, after 13 seasons on the air, audiences might have mourned her "hot topics" segments, but her usual targets probably threw a party. Even her producer Suzanne Bass has to be sighing in relief given how much shade Williams threw her way.
Over the years, Williams has thrown insults at far too many people for us to name, but she seems to reserve some of her cruelest words for other women. "Rihanna is not the keeper. She's the drive-by girl, she's the run-through girl," she once said in a segment discussing Rihanna's romance with Drake. "Rihanna is a fun girl, but she's not a wife and she's not a girlfriend." There's a nearly half hour clip reel of Williams throwing shade at Mariah Carey on YouTube, and a shorter but just as shady montage of her punches thrown at Ariana Grande. She has also had feuds with Nicki Minaj, LeeAnn Rimes, and Lil Kim, to name a few.