Julie Chen admits to plastic surgery to fix 'Asian eyes'

At the age of 43, Julie Chen has had successful career as a reporter and television host for nearly 20 years. But at the age of 25, Chen was told she'd never be successful unless she made some pretty significant changes.

"My secret dates back to -- my heart is racing -- it dates back to when I was 25 years old and I was working as a local news reporter in Dayton, Ohio," Chen, told her co-hosts on "The Talk."

"And [the news director] said, 'You will never be on this anchor desk, because you're Chinese,'" she recalled.

"He said 'Let's face it Julie, how relatable are you to our community? How big of an Asian community do we really have in Dayton?...On top of that because of your heritage, because of your Asian eyes, I've noticed that when you're on camera, when you're interviewing someone you look disinterested and bored because your eyes are so heavy, they are so small.'"

Chen, who said she is proud of her Chinese heritage, talked it over with her parents, and they supported her decision to undergo cosmetic surgery to widen her eyes.

"And after I had it done, the ball did roll for me," she said. "And I wondered, did I give in to the man?"