Tamron Hall didn’t see a clear lane in late night television as a Black woman
The Emmy Award-winning TV host was once recommended a career path in late night before her daytime talk show.
Tamron Hall has become a daytime TV staple, yet in a recent interview, the journalist and host revealed late night was once an avenue recommended for her to go down, but one she did not think she’d find as much success in, if at all.
Before her two-time Emmy Award-winning talk show, Hall was told by a former producer at MSNBC that she should be a late night talk show host. In a recent interview with The Wrap, Hall said that while she heard the advice, she also thought it wouldn’t necessarily be a clear lane for her to pursue a career in that space as someone coming from hard news, and also as a Black woman.
“Being a news person, there’s this idea that you are serious, [and] you know, can’t shift and have a sense of humor.’ I hope I’ve proven that wrong with our show,” she told the outlet. She continued, “I also think the consideration of a Black woman is sadly not high on the list.”
While shouting out Amber Ruffin and Robin Thede, she still expressed her doubts in the industry as a whole, adding, “I sadly have to be honest with you and say I believe the industry still believes that, despite the success of many women, Joan Rivers, and others…Monique on BET, that it is a space, somehow, that’s meant for a male host. And currently that host, more times than not, is a white male.”
“Tamron Hall Show,” owned by ABC, has become a hit in the daytime space, earning a two-season renewal in 2021. Hall won an Emmy for Outstanding Informative Talk Show Host twice, in 2020 and in 2022.
As theGrio previously reported, unlike “The Talk” and “The Jennifer Hudson Show,” Hall’s show is not a WGA-covered show, and has been able to return amid the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes in Hollywood.
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