In The News

How has the character of Sloan Sabbith evolved in

Season 2?

Sloan is an economist but this year she gets more involved in news stories. She sits in for the 10 pm broadcast and pushes the network to do more stories on anti-terrorism policies and drones. Also,we see this great relationship develop between Sloan and Jeff Daniel’s character (Will McAvoy).

You play an economics wizard. Personally,how good are you with numbers?

I’m pretty good! As an Asian,I have to be good at math. But to memorise any dialogue as difficult as Aaron Sorkin’s (the show’s creator and writer),I have to go back and learn about every economic term. In a way,it has been like going back to school for me.

What kind of news stories do you like to follow?

I majored in journalism,so my mother is very happy I’m using my degree in some way! I love watching all the news channels. I watch cable news in the morning and then I jump into all the blogs. It is a fascinating world that we live in and it’s important to know what’s going on. I admire journalists so much. It’s a very difficult job to give the public information that they need. But I’m much better at pretending to be a journalist than being a real journalist.

Was there any journalist or news anchor you modeled yourself on while researching your character?

I had a big say in how my character should look and dress. I wanted Sloan to wear a nice tailored suit like a man wears a well-fitted suit. I wanted to show that as a woman she could embrace her femininity and not apologise for it by wearing turtle necks or play it up by wearing low-cut shirts. She wasn’t based on any one person,but the anchor I personally look up to is Diane Sawyer. She’s simple with her make-up and jewellery.

Most of the episodes are intense and high on drama. How do you keep the mood on the sets light?

I probably joke around the most. I grew up in a military family where things were always quite serious so I’m used to making jokes to make people laugh. Thankfully,nobody on the set takes themselves too seriously. Everybody is susceptible to making others laugh and having fun themselves.