Meet Debbie

Debbie Matenopoulos has consistently proven herself to be a versatile talent in the entertainment industry. For nearly three decades, this five-time Emmy® nominee has successfully sustained her career as a compelling journalist, talk show host, lifestyle expert, and bestselling cookbook author. She has become one of the most recognized and respected personalities on television today.

While she has been the co-host of Hallmark Channel’s flagship lifestyle show “Home and Family” since 2015, Matenopoulos began her illustrious career at just 17 years old with MTV News in New York City. Debbie was still attending New York Universitys’ school of Journalism when she landed the gig of a lifetime in 1997, becoming one of the original five co-hosts of Barbara Walters groundbreaking hit daytime show, “The View”. Making her the youngest person in television history to hold a permanent position on a daytime talk show. She helped shape the show by being instrumental in building the show's format and reputation. Offering the younger generations perspective, Matenopoulos helped make the program a tremendous success and pop culture phenomenon. Her popularity among the younger demographic led to a guest appearance playing herself on “Saturday Night Live” in a parody about the talk show.

Soon thereafter, Matenopoulos became part of the E! Network family and began co-hosting all of the red-carpet events with Ryan Seacrest and Giuliana Rancic, which consistently garnered E! its highest ratings, including the Emmys®; Grammys®; Golden Globes®; and Academy Awards®.  Matenopoulos also hosted the top-rated show “Fashion Police,” as well as the daily entertainment news show “The Daily 10,” while simultaneously co-hosting Style Network’s #1 rated show “Instant Beauty Pageant” with her current “Home and Family” co-host, Cameron Mathison. 

Throughout her career she has interviewed nearly every Hollywood celebrity while also covering hard news topics of the moment, such as the Jennifer Hudson Murder trial, Whitney Houston's death and the trial of James Holmes for the Movie Theater Massacre in Aurora, Colorado. As correspondent of CBS’s nightly entertainment magazine program, “The Insider,” from 2012-2014 and then as co-host from 2014-2017, she added many highlight worthy interviews to her career. Namely with Oprah Winfrey, Bill Gates, Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Mariah Carey, Justin Timberlake, Jennifer Lopez, Katie Couric, Dianne Sawyer, as well as an exclusive two part sit down interview with Donald Trump and his family at Trump Plaza, and an exclusive with Jenna Telackova, the first transgender Beauty Pageant contestant ever allowed to compete in Miss Universe Pageant.

Her long list of interviews continued with Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Samuel L. Jackson, Angelina Jolie, Sterling K. Brown, Paul Rudd, Dolly Parton, Cher, Madonna, Mick Jagger, Charlize Theron, Queen Latifah, Sarah Palin, Viola Davis, Snoop Dogg, Martha Stewart, Megyn Kelly, Leonardo Dicaprio , Ice Cube, Carol Burnett, Meryl Streep, Trisha Yearwood, Robert Wagner, Garth Brooks, Jon Hamm, Jamie Foxx, Lionel Richie, etc. If they are in the public eye or have been in the last 30 years chances are Debbie knows them and or has interviewed them numerous times. She was even the first person to interview Simon Cowell in his $20 million dollar Beverly Hills estate, before her mentor Barbara Walters had the chance.

In 2013 Debbie published her first critically acclaimed and bestselling cookbook, “It’s All Greek to Me”. Calling the book a love letter to her family's native Greece and donating part of the proceeds to help find a cure for ALS, the disease that ultimately took her father’s life. Debbie journeyed back to Greece to write, collect, and photograph the beautiful recipes in this book and she is incredibly proud to share her family’s classic Greek recipes right from their own kitchens. 

Continuing to develop her Greek lifestyle brand, Debbie launched her own line of skin care products in 2020 based on natural, organic, and indigenous ingredients from her native Greece, namely the island of Ikaria for which the skin care line is named, and happens to be one of the only 5 blue zones on the planet.

Matenopolous' personality, charisma, and credibility have earned her the trust and respect of many of the most famous and notable people around the world.  The relationships she has created continue to garner her access to some of Hollywood's most elusive celebrities.

Since 2011 Debbie has combined her passion for helping others share their stories with her love of family, cooking, and culture on Hallmark Channels’ hit daytime lifestyle program, “Home and Family”.