Hip Mom Wants to Have a Chat
By Staff -- Broadcasting & Cable, 1/6/2003
Reality comes to daytime with Warner Bros.' new reality talk show starring Sharon Osbourne. Osbourne, the heart and soul of MTV's hit reality show The Osbournes, will bring her brand of straight talk to the new show.
"It's all about Sharon," says Jim Paratore, executive vice president of Warner Bros. Domestic Cable Distribution and president of Telepictures Productions. "It's her story as a woman who has overcome a lot of obstacles to end up becoming a successful businesswoman, wife and mother. Her whole life is a talk show."
The show will feature Osbourne tackling an issue each day, hosting celebrities and regular people, and interacting with the audience. Occasionally, she will sit down and do lengthy one-on-one interviews with stars and newsmakers.
The matriarch of the wacky Osbourne clan already has proven popular with women, who relate to her life filling multiple roles while keeping the family together.
"She's this young, hip mother they all wish they had, but she also appeals to the 35-45-year-old women. They see her struggling and dealing with all the same issues in life that they deal with," Paratore says. "She's a smart, compelling, caring, intelligent woman who has this innate curiosity about people and their lives. She has a wealth of life experience and she loves to give advice."
Osbourne also has the potential to be a sort of an edgy Dr. Phil, because she is not afraid of telling people the truth. "You want to find someone that brings name recognition and a back story that generates familiarity," Paratore says. "But I wouldn't go so far to say it generates success. As soon as you say that, someone is going to come along that you have never heard of and knock it out of the park."
Stations, particularly the Tribune group, have been interested in the show from the moment word got out that Warner Bros. had signed Sharon to a deal.
"Part of our commitment to this business is to spend money," Paratore says. "We think you have to spend the money and create quality programs to attract a quality audience that advertisers want to reach. If we all just go low, you can't sell it. It's cheaper to produce, but you end up with a downscale, older audience. You have to be willing to spend money to make money."
