Will We Be Chanting 'Go Ricki, Go Ricki!' Again?

     I don't know who hasn't heard, but if you haven't heard, Oprah is ending her talk show.  The last show is scheduled to air May 25th.  So this means that the # 1 spot for a talk show will be open.  Rumor has it that Ricki Lake wants the # 1 spot.  Yeah, that's right, Ricki is coming back to daytime television. 
    Twentieth Television confirmed yesterday that it is developing a syndicated daytime show with Lake to launch in fall 2012, which is when Couric's show would likely debut as well.  Katie Couric is currently hosting the CBS evenging news, but is rumored to more back to daytime televisison.
    Lake hosted her last show from 1993 to 2004, and she was a big draw among younger women.
It will be interesting to see whether Lake will still be able to draw that audience in light of the huge changes that have swept through daytime television in the past seven years and the changes to come.
Further, ratings have fallen for syndicated talk shows across the board, and only one recent launch, the Winfrey-backed "Dr. Oz," has turned into a hit. Cable and the internet are increasingly drawing viewers away from daytime TV.     Lake's show will focus on topics including divorce, family, parenting, marriage and weight loss, themes close to the heart of the 42-year-old single mom, who lost 125 pounds since her last show ended.

D. Martez