It began, as these things often do, with the Big O.

Sophomore Wendell Scott is the host of “The Wendell Show” on Channel 12. Photo by: Ashley Strickland

“I was always inspired by Oprah,” Wendell Scott, University sophomore and host of the University talk show “The Wendell Show,” said.

As someone who hopes to go into broadcasting, Scott grew up on the Queen of Daytime.

Last semester, his inspiration prompted him to approach GTV, UGA’s housing channel, to pitch a new idea: the University’s first daytime talk show.

GTV was happy to oblige. With the help of the group’s president, Kenny Adcox, and its adviser, Tamara Burke, action quickly became reality: rooms were reserved and dates and times were nailed down.

Soon enough, “The Wendell Show” had taped and aired its first season.

Thursday, it will be back on televisions across campus on Channel 12 for a second season with topics that balance the serious and the silly.

The premiere, entitled “Haitian Hearts,” will focus on two Haitian students and their reactions to the country’s devastating earthquake. On April 15, the show will be hosting the North Georgia Paranormal Society.

Mixed issues continue from the first season, which featured diverse

episodes such as “Is Hip-Hop Dead?” and “Eating Right: Why It Feels So Wrong.”

“You can’t just do pop-culture all the time. People are interested in more things,” Scott said. “I feel like I have to balance it to make it good.”

That is his main goal: to educate entertainingly.

“I love making people feel comfortable,” he said. “I want to open the eyes of the audience to things they don’t see.”

To encourage interaction, there is a Q&A session with each episode’s guest after the interviews.

It’s a segment that provides an opportunity to learn new things on interesting issues, Scott said.

If the issue is interesting — like the first season’s “Health Care: The Great Debate” — it can lead to an energetic discussion with the audience.

Still, Scott has continued to find a steady stream of willing audience members, usually between 20 and 40 students. Handling a live audience, however, requires a capable crew.

That is the task of Mallory Whitfield, his production assistant and “pre-show host.”

“At first I was very intimidated,” she said. “But when I approach the audience, I have to be excited, myself.”

Her approach typically involves a review of the cue-cards (when to applaud) and rules (no fake laughter) followed by a demonstration of the show’s trademark hand gesture: a large “W.”

In the beginning, Whitfield handled her duties with slight apprehension.

“It was an experience,” she said. “I had no idea how things were going to go.”

Now, all the kinks have been worked out, and each live taping is an opportunity for more learning and more hands-on experience.

As the University’s first talk-show host, he hopes his dedication to broadcasting thus far will help him in the future. Regardless, Scott plans on hosting “The Wendell Show” until he graduates.

“[The show] brings something different,” he said. “It’s more ‘Tyra’ or ‘Wendy Williams’ right now. It’s not ‘Oprah’ yet, but it’s getting there.”