The philanthropist and Media Queen of African descent, whose childhood shaped her very existence has inspired so many lives around the Globe and is still in the business of touching lives.
Oprah Gail Winfrey is an American businesswoman and talk show host. She is best known for her Chicago-based talk show, The Oprah Winfrey Show, which was the highest-rated television show of its kind in history and ran in national syndication for 25 years from 1986 to 2011.
She was known as the “Queen of All Media,” and she was the richest African American of the twentieth century, as well as North America’s first black multi-billionaire.
The Oprah Winfrey Show run from 1986 to 2011 and produced 4561 episodes. The show also received 47 daytime Emmys and remains the single highest-rated show in the history of America Television.
Oprah in her formative years
She could not have been born in worse circumstances than the small town of rural Mississippi where she was born in 1954.
Oprah spent her formative years switching between her mother, grandmother, and father, always struggling with her circumstances.
Being a poor, black girl in 1960s America was hardly a recipe for phenomenal success.
Nonetheless, she was successful.
Oprah demonstrated incredible personality strength at a young age. Her grandmother frequently recalled Oprah’s effortless ability to perform on stage, whether or not one was present.
This vibrant personality inspired her to pursue and succeed in a career in television broadcasting.
Also read: South Sudan: Once had the Tallest NBA player
The Abuse
Oprah was 9 years old when she was sexually abused for the first time. Oprah’s 19-year-old cousin raped her while babysitting Vernita’s children, then took her out for ice cream and told her to keep it a secret. She did, but it was not the end.
She subsequently faced additional abuse from a family friend and an uncle. For years, she remained silent about everything.
Death and a baby
Oprah was unable to discuss her sexual abuse with her mother, and Vernita provided little guidance to the adolescent. As a result, Oprah began acting out. She skipped school, dated boys, stole money from her mother, and even attempted to flee. Vernita couldn’t stand it any longer, so Oprah was sent back to Nashville to live with her father.
Oprah discovered she was pregnant when she was only 14 years old. She was able to keep the pregnancy a secret from her parents until she was seven months along. She went into early labour the day after telling her father about the pregnancy. She gave birth to a baby boy, who died two weeks later.
She reclaimed
When 16-year-old Oprah first read Maya Angelou’s book, “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” she experienced a transformation. Her perspective was altered, and she subsequently remarked, “I read it numerous times. I had never before read a book that gave me a reason to believe in myself.”
Her perspective was altered by this incident, and she started to reclaim control of her life. She put her efforts into her studies and then turned back to public speaking, a skill that would get her noticed. It all started in 1970 when she won a public speaking contest at the local Elks’ Club. A four-year college scholarship was the reward.
What she calls motivation
Oprah’s style and emotional delivery drew the attention of a position with a Nashville radio station in 1971, while she was still in high school. She moved to Chicago in 1983 to host the low-rated AM Chicago after transitioning to TV in Nashville and later Baltimore.
With high ratings, Oprah Winfrey surpassed Donahue as Chicago’s most popular talk show. The show was renamed The Oprah Winfrey Show after a few years and aired for 25 years.
Despite appearing on national television, Oprah’s distinctive manner led to the creation of a completely new medium of communication on television: a more private confessional. Her complete empathy for her visitors—often to the point of tears—created an atmosphere where they felt more comfortable sharing personal experiences. She also operates the Oprah Leadership academy for girls (OLAG).
She created and popularized what is now known as “tabloid talk shows.” Oprah Winfrey is “sharper than Donahue, wittier, more real, and far better connected to her audience, if not the globe,” according to Newsday’s Les Payne.
The How
By refusing to believe what she was told.
While being poor, black, and female in rural Mississippi were facts of her early life, Oprah did not believe that those labels defined her.
She didn’t believe she was constrained by those labels.
And neither did she believe those in her life who told her she’d never amount to anything because of those labels.
Oprah had the option of allowing those rumours to become the tale she told herself, but she made a different decision. She overcame her worries and obstacles and had faith in herself.
Oprah is up and about
She established the Oprah Winfrey Network in 2011 (OWN). To think Oprah would retire after her show ended, she found another way to give back and inspire the young generation as a philanthropist. Though it started at a slow pace, it picked up in 2015 and since then it’s been a success story.
Winfrey said she wanted to help girls like her- Girls who really wanted it.
And that’s what she does with her Angels Network and ended up operating a boarding school in South Africa for disadvantaged girls. –The Oprah Winfrey Leadership academy for girls.
She announced a few years back, partnering with Apple to produce original content.
Secret
Oprah Winfrey – “My life is filled by my being. So I come from a focus place. I come from compassion, a willingness to understand and to be understood. I come from wanting to connect. Just my nature.”
“The secret of that shelved for 25 years, is that people could see themselves in me all over the world.”
“I’m grounded in my own self. Though I could get more shoes, I was grounded to keep my foot on the ground. Staying awake and conscious.” She said in an interview.
“What I’ve been doing up till today is to do the consciousness work. I worked at staying awake.”
Oprah – My success fuels from actually wanting to be a better person on earth.”
Her viewers globally would be proud of her Network – She said, There’s no difference between her and the audience. They are the same because they seek the same things.
What’s OWN all about?
The Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) is a basic cable channel in the United States owned by Discovery Inc. and Harpo Studios. It debuted on January 1, 2011, replacing the Discovery Health Channel.
Discovery acquired a larger stake in the network in 2017 after it was initially a 50/50 joint venture. Harpo remains a “significant” minority stakeholder in the channel, and Winfrey is under contract with it until at least 2025.
OWN was available to approximately 81.9 million pay television households (70.3% of all television households) in the United States as of February 2015.
Queen Sugar is one of OWN’s production. It currently has six seasons going on to the 7th
Her Network also produces Ready to Love, Woman to Woman discussion on its cable and other inspiring and exciting shows.
Watch the video below – Credit ( Evan CarMichael)
Follow Clicks ‘n Likes On Facebook for more updates
