Oprah Winfrey-Pro or Con?

[EstimatedProphet]

Waddya think? Give some examples.

[progmom]

1. hey - she got a whole segment of the population excited about reading

I have to give her props for that.

[Call Me Wesley]

2. Sometimes

I'm really glad that my satellite dish only gets half the channels beacuse it's halfway broken.

[Droopy]

3. I'm neutral about Oprah

I don't think I'd care either way if her shows thrives or tanks.

[JVS]

25. Wouldn't it be better though if they had something more intellectually...

stimulating in her time-slot, like Monster-trucks?

[951-Riverside]

4. Pro

She no Condi thats for sure

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

5. Call me crazy.

Neither.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

6. Call me crazy.

Neither.

[Left Is Write]

7. I like Oprah just fine and watch her show occasionally.

Frankly, I don't really understand the rabid hatred of her.

[WindRavenX]

8. jeaousy

:hi:

[philosophie_en_rose]

9. I agree. She's sometimes shrill, but generally good.

I appreciate her outlook on life and her success. And, bringing politics into it, Oprah's philanthropy and focus on social programs (especially education) are pretty liberal. Some of her shows are silly (and she's brought Dr. Phil into the world, and is also mentoring the annoying Rachel Ray). However, I don't see that Oprah deserves all the hatred focused on her.

[grace0418]

10. I don't hate her but I don't love her either.

I think she's pretty self-absorbed. Every time I've ever seen the show, no matter who the guest is or what the topic, somehow it always comes back to Oprah. She could have a Norwegian fisherman who'd been nearly beaten to death by a mime as a guest and she'd still manage to interrupt him mid-sentence and make his story somehow relate to her life. Plus she'd make it sound like she managed to solve all of her problems through sheer force of will and not at all because she can afford the best doctors, therapists, personal assistants, dieticians, personal trainers, chefs and maids that money can buy.

[Zing Zing Zingbah]

12. I agree...

I also can't stand how she gives people advise on things she has no experience with, like raising children.

[Dangerously Amused]

15. She's an incredibly successful, strong and savvy self-made black woman.

Potentially threatening/intimidating on so many levels.


I love her!


<3

[LostinVA]

26. Me either -- especially the rabid hatred on here

Some nasty things said about Miss Oprah. A strong, black woman who came from nothing, with all strikes against her, turning into one of the richest people in the world... who gives back an incredible amount of her fortune into the domestic and international community.

Very few people on DU get the kind of nastiness she gets. Weird.

And, I know the Arnold thing. She was repaying a big debt to an old friend. I don't agree with her decision on this at ALL... but NO WAY this cancels out the incredible good she's done. No way.

[JVS]

32. The only thing I dislike about her is that FUCKING NO GOOD SHOW!

AARRGGGGGHHHHHH! I like her work in movies. I even watch her TV channel occasionally without problem. But put me in a waiting-room with that show on and I just want to die! It's the worst. I've hated it since I was little kid and cartoons would come off so that she could sit there talking to some fucking loser! I'm not to fond of the book club or that Dr. Phil (It is HER fault that he is famous!) either.

[Deja Q]

11. She's moving her self-congratulatory special to next week because of *

I betcha she voted *.

She's also in it for herself.

And those "In Living Color" spoofs rock.

So "con" for me... though the ILC spoofs tempt me to vote "pro" anyway. :D

[LostinVA]

27. That's not what that special is about

It's celebrating 25 civil rights leaders.

[Derailer]

13. I just don't like her

[TallahasseeGrannie]

14. I like her show

but gosh, it is just a talk show. She has a rather inflated sense of self. But I guess being a millionaire with the ability to push your agenda for an hour a day will do that.

[Sanity Claws]

16. I admire her

She worked for and earned everything she has. At the same time, she has not forgot those people who are less well off. She has helped in Katrina relief. She has thrown her efforts behind fund-raising for African schools. She has an angel network that helps people. She seems like a genuinely nice person.

[TheProphetess]

17. I told EP not to put up this poll b/c it would piss me off

I absolutely love Oprah for many reasons. The first being that she gives back TONS of her money to charitable organizations then shows us the outcome (in case you hate her and didn't bother to watch her show today, she showed where the money she fronts plus the donations from her viewers went to rebuild a village in Sri Lanka devastated by the Tsunami as well as homes being build for people who lost theirs due to Hurricane Katrina).

For so many people on this board, "buying blue" is a very important issue and we wag our fingers at people who shop at Walmart and companies that do not give back to their communities or to charities. Well, in my humble opinion, Oprah is as blue as it gets. She puts her money where her mouth is.

Plus, as Dangerously Amused (see post #15) put it so well, many people don't like her b/c she's a woman, she's black, and (gasp!) she has opinions about things. How freaking dare her! Like her personality and her advice and her "I have a similar story from my life" way of doing her show or not, I LOVE that she gives and gives and gives of her time, her money, and her energy to make people's lives better (and that includes bringing up issues that make us uncomfortable and about which we just aren't aware). Sure, she does the fluff stuff now and then, but she also has not forgotten to give back.

By the way, I know I won't be able to look at this thread again, so respond as you wish to my anger (if I did come across as angry). I hate it when people Oprah bash for no good reason. And no, I don't watch Dr. Phil, nor do I care about him. I do care about rich people giving back to those who have nothing.

[LostinVA]

28. Agree Agree Agree Agree Agree

I am tired of the slams at Oprah on DU... I'm white, female, gay and I LOVE her. For every reason you said.

[progmom]

31. yay prophetess!!!!

:applause:

[Akoto]

18. On the whole, I like her very much.

Some would say that she can be self-absorbed, and I won't deny that. If you tune into something called the Oprah Winfrey Show and expect it to not be about Oprah ... Well, you had it coming. ;)

On the whole, I find her to be a good person. She clawed her way up from some terrible circumstances to become one of the wealthiest and most influential women in modern America. She does a lot of good with her money, particularly with her Angel Network. Many people in the tsunami and Katrina disasters owe their recoveries to her charitable efforts. In addition to that, Oprah has revitalized an appreciation for culture and literature among America's population, and she is big into overcoming stereotypes (particularly about women).

If all of the above comes at the cost of dealing with a little self-absorption, I can take it. :)

[Skittles]

19. I don't like her

I find her extremely phony and manipulative

[2bfree]

20. I mostly like her show.

I watch when she does shows about health, books and money, I avoid her show when she has celebrities on.

[Orsino]

21. She's Big Money now...

...but she got there, by and large, by empowering women. That still counts for a lot.

If nothing else, she has Republican males running in terror, afraid that they will have to examine their feelings.

[Jade Fox]

22. She is a genuinely self-made person.....

something that is mostly a myth in this country. Very few people attain great success without major help from moneyed family or class connections providing excellent education, start-up capital, etc. Yet Oprah, who was born poor, black, illegitimate (I think), and not outstandingly good-looking, made herself into.....Oprah. And she uses her success to help others.

Even when I find her irritating, I respect her.

[cally]

23. I blame her for giving CA Arnie

She had Arnie and Maria on her show before the recall and had none of the other candidates. She only posed softball questions and it was essentially an endorsement by Oprah. I've never liked her since.

I also partially blame her for giving us *. Her interview with him helped increase his support from women.

I won't forgive her for either.

[LostinVA]

30. She has not been a * booster at ALL

She has consistently slammed the invasion of Iraq, was the first -- and one of the best -- on the scene reporters post-Katrina, and has slammed pretty much all his policies on her show.

[JVS]

24. Oprah is totally lame

[Rabrrrrrr]

29. I applaud her for being self-made and donating so much money;

and sticking up for what she believes; she picks generally genuinely good books for her reading list and has helped get new authors the recognition they deserve; and even being a good model of how having a constant weight problem doesn't make one a morally deficient person.

I abhor her for her self-absorbed way of giving, her inablility to let anyone tell their story without her constantly interrupting and saying "me, too!" and for her fake, insecere tears and otherwise rather insincere ways.

And I think that's why she pisses me off so much: she's the most visible, powerful African-American, and a woman to boot, who could be a totally powerful icon of goodness and liberalism that even the right should have to respect and be in awe of, but she totally blows it with her fakeness, insincerity, self-absorption, AND the fake @*&% tears.