Page 159 - April Issue

six years of her life were greatly at age 17, and attracting the
influenced by this woman, who
was much more supportive
and encouraging than Oprah’s
own mother. At the age of six,
Oprah went on to live with her
mother, who had just given birth
to another child. As a maid, her
mother found it difficult to raise broadcaster and the self-esteem
both daughters, and Oprah
was sent to live with the man
she believed to be her father in
Tennessee. While she was away,
her mother gave birth to yet
another daughter, whom she
gave up for adoption, as she
could not afford to take care
of her. However, Oprah never
knew about her second half-
sister until 2010. She eventually
moved back with her mum, who
was also by then the mother of
Oprah’s half-brother.
As she grew up from
the age of nine, she suffered
physical assaults and abuse
from members of her family,
later becoming pregnant as a
teenager. Even the beauty of
motherhood was taken away
from her when her son died
in infancy. When she was in
high school, she was always
reminded of her poverty and
started lying and stealing from
her mother. Unable to raise her
child, Oprah’s mother decided
to send her back to her father in
Tennessee. Her father was strict
but made Oprah’s education a
priority. Like her grandmother,
Oprah’s father was encouraging
and had a great influence
in her life, enabling her to
become a model student and
a popular young woman. A
well-deserved scholarship gave
her the opportunity to carry
on her studies while working
at a grocery store. She also
flourished as a young black
woman, winning the Miss Black
Tennessee beauty pageant
attention of a local Black radio
station, where she worked
during her final years in high
school and her first years in
college. She carried on working
for various radio stations, using
her talent as an interviewer and
gerne“acOot upirrnaafglhui’nsengfcaeatnhinder hhwearadsliafe,
enabling her to become
paopmuloadrel ysotuundgentwaomndana.”
her grandmother instilled in her
as a child.
At the age of thirty,
Oprah turned to television,
where she made an incredible
impact, increasing the ratings
and revenues of her show. By
1986, she had made her way
up to having a program named
after her, The Oprah Winfrey
Show, extended to a full hour
and broadcasted nationally. In a
field dominated by white males,
Oprah had now become the
host of the most popular show
on TV. The program started as
a tabloid talk show, developing
a culture of confession and self- celebrity, she faces criticism,
help aids, but quickly raised to
a multi-award winning standard.
In her shows, she would bring
up subjects such as politics,
spirituality, social issues and
medical awareness, interviewing
celebrities about charity causes
they support. Oprah has also
appeared in and produced films
and TV programs, generally
endorsing the causes of women
mama me-time
and denouncing slavery,
portraying strong women
fighting for their rights.
She has created her own
production company, Harpo
Productions – including Harpo
Films and Harpo Radio Inc –
co-founded the women’s cable
television network
Oxygen, and developed OWN mother, baby & child April 2011
(Oprah Winfrey Network), a
multiplatform media company.
Oprah also leaves her mark
on the publishing industry,
having co-authored five books,
publishing two magazines, as
well as with the on-air Oprah
Book Club, which has incredible
influence on which books
become instant bestsellers.
Through all those means of
communications, Oprah Winfrey
reaches millions of people,
of women, everyday viewers,
listeners and readers.
As an adult and a
almost as much as she receives
praises. She might be believed
to be the richest self-made,
African American woman of
the 20th century, she is still
a woman, with her pains and
heartaches, and she applies the
rule of her show to herself when
she shares private and personal
feelings with her audience. She
was not afraid to talk about
159