A few words with ... Nicole Scherzinger, Shepard Smith and Michael Chiarello
Nicole Scherzinger, Shepard Smith and Michael Chiarello (from left)
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Nicole Scherzinger of "The X Factor" on Fox
Q: Considering how many talent shows you have aced, do you have a real affinity with the contestants?
A: I truly relate to them. It is the same audition process. "Popstars" is how I got my start, and I just feel like I am still doing it. I can empathize.
Q: What is the best advice you received as a performer?
A: To just be myself. Be true to yourself, but give all of yourself and be true to the choices that you make.
Q: What do you strive for in performances?
A: I leave it out there on the stage all the time.
Q: "The X Factor" has the element where the judges mentor the singers, and they are supposed to live with you. Are they actually in your home?
A: If I could, I would have them all over. There are 32 acts.
Q: Few shows have launched with this sort of frenzy. What's it like?
A: There is so much hype and energy. When (Simon Cowell) asked me to be a guest judge on "The X Factor" in the U.K., everybody and their mom watched it. This is Simon's baby. I am honored that he put me on the panel. I say we are one big happy dysfunctional family.
Q: What are you looking for in the winner?
A: He or she needs to hit you first; you need to feel their energy and the light and the power they bring to the stage, if there is any.
Shepard Smith of "The Fox Report" on Fox News Channel
Q: What do you consider the secret to Fox News Channel's success?
A: To pretend that (the news is) boring just seemed weird to me. That's what I felt like our competitors were doing at the time. In addition, Roger (FNC chief Roger Ailes) had his plan. We're going to do this in a fair and balanced way, with the understanding that a large segment of society and our country and people out in the flyover land, and people down South, people with different political bents, felt like they'd been ignored all these years.
He tells me, every time I see him, "Don't worry about who cares. Don't worry about who gets angry. If you get it right, we're going to be fine. Get it accurate." My job is to get the news together.
Q: What do you think when media watchers can't quite pin down your personal ideology?
A: My bias is towards getting the facts to the screen. A lot of people are hired here and elsewhere to give their opinions and to read talking points and to try to affect the public discourse and the mood of the nation.
Mine is to tell you what's happening, so you can decide. There are two different missions going on. I don't think Sean Hannity is going out there trying to make sure the Democrat side gets heard every day. That's not his job. His job is to be a conservative talk show host. My job is to be the evening news guy.
Michael Chiarello of "The Next Iron Chef: Super Chefs" on Food Network
Q: What food do you dislike?
A: I have to go way down the food chain to dislike something. The only thing I have not liked are things that can be great, but a bad tripe is just nasty.
Q: How do you define Napa Valley style?
A: It hasn't been around long enough. It is Mediterranean, 42nd latitude. Tuscany fits right into the Mediterranean culture. The French were here but didn't do as well as Italians did. What we get in Napa -- I moved here in '86, and we were cooking farm to table -- it didn't have a name, just cooking right. Now everybody talks like God whispered in their ear.
Q: You talk about visiting the kitchen when you go to a restaurant, but you're a well-known chef; can the rest of us just get into the kitchen?
A: If you ask any restaurateur or chef in a place you frequent, they will show you around.
Q: What is your best advice for the home entertainer?
A: Do your experimenting for two people; cook your most familiar for 20. Don't go from Thai to vegan to Italian. You will never be great. You need to understand (there is) a big difference between taste and flavor. You need to understand the origin. And what they look like and feel like, and emotion has a flavor, and that is what makes it feel really great.
Q: Are you having fun with the show?
A: "Super Chefs" are an extraordinary array of talent. It is not a battle of 20-somethings. They were battles; on any given Sunday anybody could win.
Q: Considering how many talent shows you have aced, do you have a real affinity with the contestants?
A: I truly relate to them. It is the same audition process. "Popstars" is how I got my start, and I just feel like I am still doing it. I can empathize.
Q: What is the best advice you received as a performer?
A: To just be myself. Be true to yourself, but give all of yourself and be true to the choices that you make.
Q: What do you strive for in performances?
A: I leave it out there on the stage all the time.
Q: "The X Factor" has the element where the judges mentor the singers, and they are supposed to live with you. Are they actually in your home?
A: If I could, I would have them all over. There are 32 acts.
Q: Few shows have launched with this sort of frenzy. What's it like?
A: There is so much hype and energy. When (Simon Cowell) asked me to be a guest judge on "The X Factor" in the U.K., everybody and their mom watched it. This is Simon's baby. I am honored that he put me on the panel. I say we are one big happy dysfunctional family.
Q: What are you looking for in the winner?
A: He or she needs to hit you first; you need to feel their energy and the light and the power they bring to the stage, if there is any.
Shepard Smith of "The Fox Report" on Fox News Channel
Q: What do you consider the secret to Fox News Channel's success?
A: To pretend that (the news is) boring just seemed weird to me. That's what I felt like our competitors were doing at the time. In addition, Roger (FNC chief Roger Ailes) had his plan. We're going to do this in a fair and balanced way, with the understanding that a large segment of society and our country and people out in the flyover land, and people down South, people with different political bents, felt like they'd been ignored all these years.
He tells me, every time I see him, "Don't worry about who cares. Don't worry about who gets angry. If you get it right, we're going to be fine. Get it accurate." My job is to get the news together.
Q: What do you think when media watchers can't quite pin down your personal ideology?
A: My bias is towards getting the facts to the screen. A lot of people are hired here and elsewhere to give their opinions and to read talking points and to try to affect the public discourse and the mood of the nation.
Mine is to tell you what's happening, so you can decide. There are two different missions going on. I don't think Sean Hannity is going out there trying to make sure the Democrat side gets heard every day. That's not his job. His job is to be a conservative talk show host. My job is to be the evening news guy.
Michael Chiarello of "The Next Iron Chef: Super Chefs" on Food Network
Q: What food do you dislike?
A: I have to go way down the food chain to dislike something. The only thing I have not liked are things that can be great, but a bad tripe is just nasty.
Q: How do you define Napa Valley style?
A: It hasn't been around long enough. It is Mediterranean, 42nd latitude. Tuscany fits right into the Mediterranean culture. The French were here but didn't do as well as Italians did. What we get in Napa -- I moved here in '86, and we were cooking farm to table -- it didn't have a name, just cooking right. Now everybody talks like God whispered in their ear.
Q: You talk about visiting the kitchen when you go to a restaurant, but you're a well-known chef; can the rest of us just get into the kitchen?
A: If you ask any restaurateur or chef in a place you frequent, they will show you around.
Q: What is your best advice for the home entertainer?
A: Do your experimenting for two people; cook your most familiar for 20. Don't go from Thai to vegan to Italian. You will never be great. You need to understand (there is) a big difference between taste and flavor. You need to understand the origin. And what they look like and feel like, and emotion has a flavor, and that is what makes it feel really great.
Q: Are you having fun with the show?
A: "Super Chefs" are an extraordinary array of talent. It is not a battle of 20-somethings. They were battles; on any given Sunday anybody could win.
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