Triple the Personality: Meet the Dynamic New Hosts of ‘TakePart Live’
When the new hosts of TakePart Live met for the first time, things got real—and fast. “If we were out, I’d probably want to talk to both of you,” Jacob Soboroff told Meghan McCain and Eddie Huang as the three settled into armchairs at a bustling Los Angeles lounge. But Huang kept it honest. “I probably wouldn't talk to you guys," he said, smiling. "That’s why I think this show is interesting."
That's exactly the point. There aren’t many places where a Republican senator’s daughter, a progressive culture junkie, and the sexiest nerd on television can come together to break down the trending stories and vital issues of the day. But starting May 12, Huang, Soboroff, and McCain will bring their fun, witty, and pop culture–smart perspectives to TakePart Live, which airs on Pivot, our sister network.
Don’t expect to see this trio spitballing what’s hot on Twitter just for the sake of conversation. Viewers can anticipate a show that’s aggressive, rowdy, real, and action oriented. Like “piranhas just eating things,” says Huang.
A show that engages Millennials on the issues and spurs them to take action is critical, says McCain, because “we’re the generation that has to fix things.” And in real life all of the hosts speak up and get involved in what they care about most.
It’s no surprise, then, that Soboroff, a native of Los Angeles who served as executive director of and created a documentary about the voting project Why Tuesday, says he pays attention to that topic more than anything else. “People don’t vote,” says Soboroff. “So I care about getting people out to vote and changing the system so people can go vote.”
Huang, an adventurous Washington, D.C.–born and Orlando, Fla.–raised lawyer turned restaurateur and food personality, isn’t afraid, he says, “to put myself into any situation.” How adventurous are we talking? In the most recent episode of his Vice series Fresh off the Boat Huang eats a baby pig penis in Chengdu, China. (Yes, we’re cringing too.)
Food’s not all Huang is down to engage us on. He wants to eliminate the extremes of wealth and poverty he’s seen around the world. “I’m really on board with the billionaire tax,” he says. “I feel like the world needs a salary cap.”
Meanwhile, McCain, the daughter of longtime Arizona Sen. John McCain, says her friends know her for her ride-or-die loyalty: “If you’ll be good to me, I’ll be good to you.”
McCain, who’s come into her own on her Pivot docu-talk series Raising McCain, is used to raising more conservative eyebrows. “There are so many issues I’m really passionate about,” says McCain, but “LGBT issues [and] marriage equality” are a priority. “And anything having to do with veterans, especially Millennial veterans,” she adds.
Caring about the world does not an angel make. “I can be very stubborn,” McCain says. Huang cops to going hard when he believes in something. “My one quality that I don’t think people like, but I don’t think is bad, is that when I’m right, I don’t feel the need to be nice,” he says.
“I’ll learn from these guys how to speak up for myself,” adds Soboroff with a chuckle. It sounds like we’ll be learning right along with him when we tune in weeknights at 10 p.m.