'Survivor''s Filarski Gets a New 'View'

By Rachel F. Elson

Tuesday November 25, 2003 11:38 AM EST

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"Survivor: Australian Outback" alum Elisabeth Filarski Hasselbeck is getting a whole new "View."

The young former reality-TV star -- she made it to the final four in "Outback" before being voted off the show -- has landed the coveted fifth spot on ABC's morning chat show, where she'll join the all-female team of Barbara Walters, Joy Behar, Star Jones and Meredith Vieira, it was announced Monday.

Hasselbeck beat out rivals Erin Hershey Presley and former "Real World" star Rachel Campos for the spot vacated by Lisa Ling, who left the program almost a year ago after three years.

"She's 26 and isn't afraid of giving her point of view," Barbara Walters tells the New York Post. "We were looking for someone to give us that new charge."

Other members of the team cited Hasselbeck's conservative political views and chemistry with the rest of the cast as winning attributes, the Post notes. "I'm into it when there's conflict on a talk show -- I watch 'Crossfire' -- but it can't be mean," said Behar.

The show's producers specifically had been looking for a young-mother type from among the more than 2,000 tapes they received from would-be "View"-ers. The new co-host, who is married to Washington Redskins quarterback Tim Hasselbeck, has been hosting the Style Network's "The Look for Less" -- a job she plans to keep, reports New York's Daily News.

While predecessor Ling got her navel pierced on the air, Hasselbeck tells the Daily News there are limits to what she's willing to do for small-screen adventures.

"I'll do anything to my hair, but don't get any crazy ideas," said Hasselbeck.