Whoopi grills Denise Richards on "The View"

Barbara Walters, one of the best TV interviewers in business, must be rubbing off on her "View" co-hort Whoopi Goldberg who really raked Denise Richards over the coals this morning after the friendly chit-chat subsided about her new reality show which features appearances of her two daughters with ex-hubby Charlie Sheen. Charlie is against the little girls being on television right now.

Whoopi: I cannot get past the fact that you want to protect your children as you say you do, you're their mom and you want to keep everything private, why would you take a reality show? Is it the money?
Denise: I've had everything out there, even if I stayed quiet, things are out there...

Whoopi: ...These are little kids. So if you want to keep them private, keep your life private, do you not think this is a little extreme, to open it up?
Denise: ...They are in it very minimal and. the thing is, I've been singled out. There hasn't been one reality show with a family where there's no kids ....every reality show has children and mine are (in it) very minimal."

Whoopi: But you're going through this huge thing (battle with Sheen) and I wonder if the timing might not have been as great?
Denise: For me, the timing's good. I've been approached the last few years. I've had a horrible, horrible three years. I don't know if anyone's lost a mother to cancer. I've watched my mom die. So my mom was really wanting me to do the show. She was wanting the public to see me as I really am...

Once Denise pulled out the mom card, Whoopi backed off. Unlike Barbara Walters, she doesn't want to make her interview subjects cry!