NEW ORLEANS – WLAE-TV is launching “Let’s Talk with Keith Spera,” a weekly talk show featuring conversations with entertainers, newsmakers and local personalities.
The show premieres at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, June 15 on WLAE-TV with an encore presentation at 9:30 p.m. on Sunday, June 18. Spera’s guest for his inaugural show is New Orleans musician Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews.
During a 30-year journalism career, Spera has interviewed many notable entertainment figures, from Jerry Seinfeld to Janet Jackson to countless Louisiana musicians. Now he’s excited to take advantage of the benefits of an audio-visual medium.
“I’ve conducted thousands of interviews over the decades for the newspaper,” he said. “The TV show is a way for viewers to see not just what interview subjects say, but how they say it, which can be just as enlightening. I aspire for my TV interviews to be conversational, casual, entertaining and informative — think Larry King minus the suspenders.”
Upcoming episodes will feature WWL-TV news anchor Charisse Gibson and maverick car salesman/crooner Ronnie Lamarque.
“Keith has interviewed so many interesting characters over the years,” said Jim Dotson, vice president of LAE Productions and New Orleans public television station WLAE-TV. “Viewers will enjoy his talent for getting his guests to open up about their lives and share their insights, while also having a little fun.”
A New Orleans native, Spera has earned numerous national feature-writing awards. He was a member of The Times-Picayune’s Pulitzer Prize-winning Hurricane Katrina coverage team. He is the author of the book “Groove Interrupted: Loss, Renewal and the Music of New Orleans” (St. Martin’s Press, 2011).