On the eve of her show’s season two premiere, Lisa Ling talks Oprah and guilty social media pleasures.
Lisa Ling loves working for Oprah. Parade sat down with the 38-year-old journalist whose show, Our America with Lisa Ling, is gearing up for its second season on OWN: the Oprah Winfrey network.
Parade questioned Ling on Oprah’s management style and influence on Our America but Lisa remained positive and complimentary of media icon.
“I know that Oprah is going to be very involved and that’s a good thing.” She goes on to say, “I’ve worked for Oprah for quite awhile. It’s so inspiring because she’s not just a boss. Everything you do, she asks, ‘What’s your intention behind it?’ You never find that in television. Oftentimes the only question is, ‘What is it going to rate?'”
While she admires Oprah for her ethical and integrity-filled approach, Ling does admit working on Our America is a little different on the OWN network versus other longstanding networks such as ABC and NBC.
“OWN has gone through its challenges. It is a brand new network and looking to find its voice. But I actually feel more strongly about it now than ever. I don’t think I would be able to do any other show on any other network.”
The second season of Our America promises to shed light on provocative and gripping stories, beginning with the first episode about amateur porn.
“We explore everything from amateur porn, to veterans and PTSD, or the high number of African men in prisons. A completely diverse array of stories but each episode is a world in its own right. The stories are so rich and substantive and riveting.”
Lisa is grateful to OWN because she believes the network’s creative freedom allowed her to produce compelling documentary episodes. The one topic she hasn’t had a chance to report on is foster care, but sites lack of access as the primary obstacle.
“There are so many thousands of children in foster care but we are dealing with minors. I think if more Americans know how many kids are in foster care and these are good, honest kids who need a home, they would be more inclined to adopt.”
With all of the intense reporting Lisa Ling does, she confesses she is usually in need of a good social media fix to unwind.
“I’m a self-professed Twitter junkie. And I spend so much on Facebook. It’s highly addictive.” With over 100,000 Twitter followers and almost 2,500 tweets, we can tell.
You can follow Lisa Ling on Twitter @lisaling.
The first episode of Our America premiers Sunday, Oct. 16th on OWN.
Image courtesy of Wenn.com
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