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The View returned for its eleventh season on September 4, 2007, with celebrity guest Danny DeVito. Returning from season 10 were Joy Behar, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, and Barbara Walters. The season premiere also marked Whoopi Goldberg's first official day as co-host and moderator of the program. Preliminary ratings show that 3.4 million people watched the debut episode, roughly 1 million less than season 10's debut with O'Donnell, but still ranking as the show's second highest season premiere.
Walters announced on September 10 that Sherri Shepherd was joining the panel as the fifth permanent member. This marks the first time since Meredith Vieira left in 2006 that the show features a complete panel of five co-hosts (although Hasselbeck began an extended maternity leave in November). It also marks the first time in the show's history that two African-American co-hosts are part of the same panel. With the addition of Goldberg and Shepherd, The View has garnered its highest ratings ever. After two weeks, The View under Goldberg is averaging 3.5 million total viewers, a 7% increase from 3.3 million under O'Donnell last season.
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ABC has been unable to come to a contractual agreement with Rosie O'Donnell. As a result, her hosting duties on "The View" will come to an end mid-June.
"They wanted me three years, I wanted one year, and it just didn't work," said O'Donnell on today's show.
Despite controversy -- or maybe because of it -- O'Donnell was good business for ABC, owned by the Walt Disney Co. Ratings for "The View" during February sweeps were up 15 percent in key women demographics over the same time in 2006.
Those fans don't have to worry -- she will still be on the show in smaller doses.
"I'm not going away. I'm just not going to be here every day," added O'Donnell.
According to Barbara Walters, creator and co-executive producer of "The View," the co-host will be missed.
"We have had, to say the least, an interesting year … an exciting, fun-filled, provocative year. We have all gotten together and you will be missed," Walters said, adding, "I do not participate in the negotiations for Rosie. It was between your representatives and agents. This is not my doing."
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On September 5, 2006, Rosie O'Donnell made her debut as the new co-host, and moderator of the show. With the new changes in place, September 2006 brought in record ratings. A total of 3.1 million viewers watched that month, the highest total viewership the program has ever seen. The talk show also surged 34% in the advertiser-friendly "women aged 18-49" demographic, and sustained its early season success with its best ever November sweeps period. Entertainment Weekly magazine in March 2007 cited The View as doing for daytime TV what the Daily Show has done for nighttime TV in that it offers viewers a show that deals in genuine opinion and not mere fluff.
During season 10, O'Donnell led the daytime women's chatfest as the moderator steering the opening "Hot Topics" portion of the show. Unlike previous seasons, however, politics and taboo subjects were readily explored with the two comics (O'Donnell and Joy Behar) quickly finding humor in the news of the day and often giving strong opinions against President George W. Bush's policies including the war in Iraq which was losing support amongst Americans. As a counterpoint to O'Donnell's more liberal views,...
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