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just moved back into my parents’ house and said, “I don’t want to do this.” The press was calling, and the paparazzi was trying to find me. I am not a person who likes to fight. I’m not a person that likes to make other people feel uncomfortable, and I’m not a person that likes to debate just for the sake of debating. That is kind of what that show had become. You were debating, but it wasn’t like that in the beginning, I’m telling you. Allison: How was your firing from The View presented to you, exactly? Debbie: I was told the network was going in a different direction and yada yada yada. They did try to point things out to me like, I was young, I was going out to clubs, and at that time it was really intriguing to the paparazzi. They didn’t have anybody young in New York that was on a daytime show. I was the youngest person in history to be on a daytime show, so for them they were thinking, “Oh, she’s a loose cannon. At any moment we are going to get something good for the press.” And they were not wrong. I was a kid. Thank God there was no social media. Oh My God! Ooooh boy! I would have lasted two weeks, because the paparazzi would follow me around and Page Six… it made Barbara embarrassed as opposed to her saying, “Oh, we should talk about this on the show. We should say, “Well Debbie, it appears you are in the paper today for dancing on the bar at Hogs and Heifers. Allison: Laughs. Debbie: My friends came into town, and I wanted to show them a good time. We go to Hogs and Heifers. I’m dancing on the bar. The paparazzi are there. And Page Six, who by the way, how did they know I was going to be there? Somebody tipped them off. It’s not like they just show up. And then it’s in the paper the next day. I go to the show the next morning and I’m saying “Hey” to everybody, and literally no one is talking to me, because they know I’m about to get in big trouble. Allison: That would have been a perfect conversation starter though. That would have been like this is what is going on and gotten your perspective on it. From dancing on the bar at Hogs and Heifers to sex tapes launching careers a few short year later (laugh)… Debbiee: I was dancing on a bar. I’m not Kim Kardashian. Allison: Did you ever watch Lisa Ling, who replaced you, or Elizabeth Hasselbeck, or were you not interested? Debbie: Lisa is still my friend. I love Lisa and I love Elizabeth. I’m not as close to Elizabeth as I am to Lisa, but I love both of them. It wasn’t their fault they got a job. They got the job because there was a spot. They wanted to hire someone different than me, so they hired Lisa, and it didn’t work out for her after two years. Then they hired Elizabeth and it didn’t work out for her. I would say I was just the first to be voted off the island. I was the original Survivor. Something about that was really healing for me. It was sort of validation and vindication that wait, it wasn’t me. It wasn’t me at all. For a minute you think it’s you and your like, “Gosh what have I done? I messed this whole thing up.” I always say was almost like a public beheading. It was like they called everyone down to time square and let’s put Debbie’s head into the guillotine and oh my gosh cheer. It was almost like gosh you guys are aggressive. I’m just a kid. Having had that done so early in my career prepared me for anything. I’m like Teflon now. The truth is it wasn’t me. I did everything they asked me to do and it just… the show was trying to find its footing. Allison: You eventually moved to LA and went over to E! and hosted The Daily 10, which was very different. Were you personally heavy into celebrity gossip culture, or was it just a job? Debbie: I worked at MTV before, so initially the only reason I started working for MTV is because I’m such a music head. I love music. I’m tone deaf and I don’t play an instrument. I’m just a fan and I really love music. I told E!, “I was at MTV for the