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to tip my hat about a political candidate, [for example], because I don’t want the audience to question my news judgment; but if it’s something that’s personal to me— family or things that are really important — I feel very free to talk about the issues.”

Recently, she was tested in this regard, when she was sent on assignment to Kentucky to interview Kim Davis, the now infamous county clerk who has denied same-sex couples marriage licenses. Later, as the issue was discussed on “The View,” Faris didn’t jump to criticism.

“With Kim, she’s been so demonized, where people have such hate for her, that [in my interview] I needed to make sure I was very fair but firm,” Faris tells Splash.“I tried to ask her the tough questions, but I also tried to ask those questions with some compassion— because, regardless of what you might think about her and where she stands, she has a right to her opinion.”

One sector of the population that Faris tries in particular to represent: Midwesterners— and she champions Chicago in particular. “When you see the national news, you feel like they forget about the Midwest; everything’s very East Coast- andWest Coast-centric,” she says. “I stick up [for them]. In our morning meeting, they were talking about what a big deal it was that the [New York] Mets made the playoffs, and I was like, ‘Uh, yeah, well the Cubs made the playoffs and remember the Cubs haven’t won theWorld Series since 1908, people! That’s kind of a big deal!’”

Though she doesn’t care for the phrase “Midwestern sensibility,” it may be the best way to describe what she brings to “The View.”“I was raised with a cornfield in my backyard,” she says.“I started working at a really early age; I had to pay my way through college. I worked hard to get to the point I am now, and I’m proud that I rolled my sleeves up and got my [hands] dirty. I want to bring some of that hard-working mentality — which is so reflective of the Midwest in general— to the table. We’re not entitled, we’re just really good people with good values that I think a lot of times aren’t reflected in these national shows. I want to bring those perspectives to the forefront.” And, we think, people will listen.