Amanda de Cadenet gets ‘Undone’

Television personality, photographer and entrepreneur Amanda de Cadenet has launched a new talk show on Lifetime. “Undone with @Amanda de Cadenet” airs on the cable network at 9:30 p.m. Thursday, and is a half-hour, fully live pop-culture program, with de Cadenet bringing her own unique approach to life into the mix.

She called recently to chat about how she will be chatting on this new show.

Q: Tell me about your new show.

A: It is basically fully-live — not live to tape — program. It’s very different from ‘The Conversation’ [her previous talk show on Lifetime], because that was a taped show and it took us six months to film it. This one is in a studio, we’re live, we are a half-hour, and it’s basically me and one or two guests, talking about the things in the news that have happened this week — that are significant to us and out team and we care about.

Q: So how will this differ from other talk shows out there?

A: We will have interviews and fun segments. It’s a totally live show, so the pacing is different from all the other shows that are taped live — but to tape and aired later. Ultimately, it is through my filter. ‘The Conversation’ was all women. We’re going to have men on this show too. There are bunch of things that are different about it, but ultimately the biggest difference is I’m a woman. I have a female perspective. I gravitate toward news stories that probably are of more interest to me, because I’m a woman.

Q: You obviously are very aware that when it comes to prime time and later, all the different talk shows are virtually all hosted by men, right?

A: The one exception I know of is Chelsea Handler. Look, there are some incredible women in daytime. Daytime is monopolized by women. But after 3 p.m., we are not given the opportunity to host our own shows. So the fact that Chelsea is moving to Netflix in August — I can’t believe in 2014 in America that the sum total of women fronting their own show on cable and network television is one. And that’s me! It’s like we’re living in the 1800s!

Q: You say everything will be programmed for your show through your “filter.” I’m curious. How has you filter changed over the years?

A: When I made “The Conversation,” I just had babies, my twins. I was so entrenched in my female community as a new mother and as woman who was really trying to get some answers about what it meant to be a woman today. How do I have a career? How do I maintain a relationship? How am I best present for my kids? How do I take care of myself properly?

All those questions so many women are constantly asking themselves. I made “The Conversation,” because I couldn’t find honest answers to those questions in the programming that existed then.

I shocked me then, in the way that now I’m shocked there aren’t more women fronting their own shows!

Now, my kids are 7. For the last seven years, I’ve been very entrenched in the world of women. But now, I’m obviously not a new mother any more. I’ve got some experience and some answers to those earlier questions — and I’ve been living my life.

One of the biggest things I realized that has changed my perspective — my filter, so to speak — was it’s imperative that men and women have their own separate spaces in the world, both figuratively and literally. I do think that we have to create more communal space for men and women to cohabit and to have an experience with one another that is engaging, fun, enjoyable and inspiring. A good time.

Q: So how do you apply that to your show?

A: There are some unfortunate truths. Men making more money than women for the same jobs. It’s things like that which have led many women to adopt an attitude that says, “We have to stick together to fight for true equality.” However, we don’t live in a world that’s only women. So we need to get together to figure out the problems that face us as both men and women.

Q: Will you be talking about political things?

A: Here’s the unfortunate thing. How can you not talk about Ukraine or the Middle East or Gaza. But I can tell you a large majority of people watching my show — should I delve into those topics — would turn the TV off. Because they’re seeing those things reported on and discussed everywhere else.

My goal is to share my perspective on the news that they’re NOT seeing everywhere else, whether it be CNN or Fox or whatever.

There is so much media. We’re inundated with media. I just think if I can give something that is perspective or an experience that isn’t what you can find 20 other places, or even five other places — that’s more interesting to me.

Every day, I’m looking at things we want to shed light on.

Q: Social media will play a big role on your show?

A: Absolutely. I see a lot of social media that is added as an after-thought to various shows. For example, they’ll say, ‘So, here’s our segment…now share your thoughts with us.’

Ours is set up so we lead with social media. Each segment has it’s own hashtag identity. We’ll be curating questions and thoughts and input from our audience live, as we got through the show.

That is going to be a lot of work to curate all of those things. But I think including as many voices as possible — and their opinions — is essential. I just want opinions.