Vanna White Says Reports on Wheel of Fortune Salary Negotiations Were 'Blown out of Proportion' (Exclusive)

Wheel of Fortune's Vanna White is exactly where she wants to be.

After host Pat Sajak announced his departure from the beloved game show in June, speculation began to swirl about his friend and longtime co-host's return. Last month, White came to a deal with Wheel of Fortune to return through the 2025-26 season.

White, 66, tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue that she found it difficult to read about the negotiations online. “It was because people just have rumors,” she says. “Everything is so blown out of proportion, not just with my stuff, with everybody's stuff.”

But White considers herself as “a strong person,” who wouldn’t let the rumors get to her.

“I'm not going to do anything I don't want to do or that I don't believe in,” she says. “My mother taught me that at a young age and I'm sticking to my guns.”

The South Carolina native would give that same advice to young women today. “I would tell them to follow your heart and really don't do anything you don't want to do,” she counsels. “Don't let anybody talk you into doing anything you don't want to do. You have that instinct inside you, we all do. You listen to that instinct inside of you. It never is wrong.”

While White admits she contemplated leaving Wheel of Fortune when Sajak, 76, decided to exit, “I'm just so happy that I have signed for two more years,” she says. “I have this next year with Pat, and then I have two years after that, so I will be part of Wheel of Fortune, at least through 2026.”

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In July, a report surfaced stating that White's lawyer asked Sony Pictures Television for 50 percent of Sajak's salary — but a source with knowledge of White's negotiations denied that figure to PEOPLE.

"Fifty percent of Pat's salary is so outrageous that no one in their right mind could say that it’s fair," the source said. "The negotiation is asking for much more than 50 percent of his salary. It's asking for the same pay — if not more."

The insider told PEOPLE that the mom of two — who became a co-host of the game show in 1982 — wanted pay parity with the longtime host after earning approximately $3 million a year for the 18 past years without any pay increases.

While details of the deal White came to last month remain under wraps, she will be there when Ryan Seacrest steps in for Sajak after he leaves.

“I know Ryan — he is professional, he's good at what he does, he's kind,” White says. “I think it's going to be good. He's such a nice guy and he loves what he does. He said, ‘Look, I am not replacing Pat. I'm not going in to try to fill Pat's shoes. No one can ever replace him.’ He says he's coming in to do a good job and to keep the show going, and I'm looking forward to working with him.”

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Wheel of Fortune airs weekdays at 7 p.m. ET on ABC.