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NEWS / WEDNESDAY, JULY 7, 2010 / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / KANSAN.COM
ALUMNI
KU grad competes to host show
BY KIRSTEN KWON kkwon@kansan.com
When Oprah Winfrey retires in 2011, a new host will have the opportunity to take over her television legacy — and it could be a Jayhawk. Tiffany Williams-Jallow, a 2005 KU graduate, is competing in the "Your OWN Show: Oprah's search for the next TV star" contest. The contestant with the most online votes will be among nine other finalists selected from other contest categories. The winner will host a new show on OWN, Winfrey's television network.
Williams-Jallow currently hosts a talk show called "Relationships 360," airing four times a week on the Time
Williams-Jallow
Warner Channel and the Comcast Channel in the Kansas City area. The voting and online portion of the contest ended July 3. Although she didn't have enough votes to be automatically selected, Williams-Jallow could still be picked by producers to continue in the competition. The Kansan caught up with Williams-Jallow to see how she's doing while she awaits the results, which will be announced on the contest's website this week.
1
How did you register for the competition?
First, I reviewed the rules for the contest. Then I uploaded my video to the site. There was a long application that I had to fill out. It took me, gosh, three hours to go through the application. There were about 50 in-depth questions that she wanted the answer to — everything from the personal web pages you're featured on, religious beliefs, personal mottos, educational background, musical tastes — pretty much anything you can think of to know about a person.
2
When did you start producing your own talk show?
I started as a result of a suggestion from the owner of the production company that now directs and edits my show. I sat on it for a couple of months and then called him in
September. I pitched a talk show that would give people expert advice on how to solve some of their relationship issues and problems.
My motivation for that is because I've been through a series of bad relationships: everything from being a child of divorce, to being a recent divorcee, suffering a miscarriage and being in abusive relationships. I felt like I could be a voice to kind of help people to navigate the stresses, the hurt and the drama that come along with these different types of relationships.
3 How do you think your background and your life experiences affect your work as a talk show host?
I have training to be a broadcast journalist and I'm a natural chatterbox. I like to talk to people and I like to give advice. I have a natural ability to connect with people and give them common sense advice drawing on my own personal experiences. That's definitely what I put into the show: being able to connect with people on a real level. I've been through these things.
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