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Why Elisabeth Hasselbeck Leaving “The View” Is a Good and a Bad Thing

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July 11, 2013

Elisabeth Hasselbeck left The View in an awkward fashion.  It was sudden, there were no real tears and everything was super professional.  The departure came after the announcement that she would be leaving to join Fox Network’s Fox & Friends where she will replace Gretchen Carlson, who is set to launch her own talk show this fall.

Barbara Walters said, “We will miss her and wish her everything good.” But, really, things were strained, at best, with Hasselbeck – who stuck to her conservative views and beliefs even when all of her other co-hosts were against her.

While many are happy to hear that she will be leaving The View, it really is a shame for several reasons.  Most importantly, she often represented the unpopular opinion and regularly was the lone Republican voice on the panel.  She was passionate, which is exactly what the show was originally created to provide – many different views.

The problem with Hasselbeck, for many, was that she was a bit brash and rough around the edges.  She was all bulldog and little finesse which made her an easy target for ridicule (think about those awful, but funny, parodies on Saturday Night Live).

While she was polarizing, Hasselbeck did gain a following and she will likely be much happier over on the Fox Network where her views will be more widely accepted.  She will probably be relieved but it might also be a little unsettling to not have to hear other perspectives.

Still, when you look at this woman who is now a mother and wife, it’s hard to believe that the first time we saw her, she was a competitor on Survivor.  Young and pretty, she sported her bandana proudly and managed to turn that brief 15 minutes of fame into a reputable career.  That’s more than any other competitor of that reality show can claim so she definitely deserves some respect.

Hopefully, things will work out for everyone on the other side of this.  The View will need to find someone to make things a little less one-sided if they want to keep their viewers engaged.  It might be a hard role to fill, especially considering how tough things were for Hasselbeck at times.  In fact, with Joy Behar also leaving, there will be two empty seats to fill. Walters will have an opportunity to create an entirely new dynamic on the show but she will need to do it carefully since both departing ladies had such strong characters.

Will you miss Elisabeth Hasselbeck?

Image: ABC

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