‘Midwestern girl’ Paula Faris brings new outlook to ‘The View’

Paula Faris

Paula Faris

When fan favorite Paula Faris left NBC-owned WMAQ-Channel 5 to join ABC News in New York, she vowed she’d have “a forever connection to Chicago.”

Now she’s bringing that connection to “The View.” On Tuesday the former NBC 5 sports anchor/reporter was named co-host of ABC’s long-running daytime talk show.

"As a born and bred Midwestern girl, Chicago will always have a giant part of my heart,” Faris told me. “I'm really anticipating this next venture on 'The View' and bringing some Midwest sensibilities to the show. Sitting alongside this diverse group of accomplished women, 'The View' will once again be a platform where many voices and views are welcome."

Faris, 39, will join Joy Behar, Candace Cameron Bure, Raven-Symon, Michelle Collins and moderator Whoopi Goldberg when “The View” begins its 19th season September 8. Faris, who's been with the network since 2012, will continue as a correspondent for ABC News and weekend co-anchor of “Good Morning America.”

“I’m humbled and excited to have not one, but two dream jobs — ‘Good Morning America’ and ‘The View,’” she said in an earlier statement. “What I love about the ‘The View’ is that no topic is off the table and every viewer can feel like they have a voice on the show. I can’t wait to connect with the audience in a new way as I take a seat alongside this exceptional group of women.”

A native of Jackson, Michigan, and graduate of Cedarville University in Cedarville, Ohio, Faris worked at stations in Dayton and Cincinnati before joining NBC 5 in November 2005. She and husband John Krueger, whom she met in college, have three children.

On Tuesday Krueger tweeted: “So proud of @paulafaris and this great opportunity on @TheView she has been shaping my World View for the past 18yrs.”