An African-American TV host who got her start on the topical BET discussion series "Teen Summit" before moving to MTV and later to her own syndicated talk show, California native Ananda Lewis turned her desire to work with children into stardom. This Howard University graduate made the most of her Washington, DC locale and auditioned at BET, winning a co-hosting job on "Teen Summit" in the mid-1990s. On this series, Lewis discussed with a panel of teens and experts issues pertinent to American youth and the black community. Striving to both interest its young viewers in important social and political issues and represent their views and concerns, the series was known as a venue for intelligent and provocative discourse. While hosting "Teen Summit", Lewis was given the opportunity to interview then First Lady Hillary Clinton, and was honored with an NAACP Image Award in 1997 for her efforts. Her work on BET led to a job at MTV, where she worked as a VJ and host for various specials and series.
Articulate, charismatic and exceptionally photogenic, Lewis wasn't content with being a pretty showpiece for MTV, and asked some tough questions of her interview subjects, turning the network's fluffy "Hot Zone" (1999) into something more worthy of its name. Among her more memorable confrontations involved the host debating the presence of scantily clad models in friend Q-Tip's video for his hit "Breathe and Stop". When R&B star Aaliyah lost her life in a 2001 plane crash, Lewis was most often called upon to host various tributes on the network, and handled the tough task of memorializing a friend with professionalism and grace. In September of 2001, "The Ananda Lewis Show" debuted in syndication. Aimed at bringing together various generations of women in heartfelt and informative discussions, the series shied away from the more exploitative talk show topics. Lewis, seeking to follow in the footsteps of talk show pioneer Oprah Winfrey, looked at her show as an opportunity to educate and unite. Time would tell whether her ambitious jump would succeed, but in the meantime, Lewis stayed on staff at MTV, where she would intermittently host special presentations.