Watch the video above. Martha Stewart clearly is not a fan of Sarah Palin. In this recent interview, she calls the quitter from Alaska “boring”, “dangerous” and “confused”, then tops it off by saying you couldn’t pay her to watch a Palin interview. Wow.
You betcha!
After standing outside in the bitter cold, purchasing Palin’s new book “Going Rouge”, and waiting for hours with tired children and a wrist band guaranteeing an autograph, fans of Sarah Palin left empty handed without so much as an apology.
There wasn’t going to be a part 2 to this issue of Oprah haters, but then someone posted the most ignorant garbage I have seen in a long time. There is this backwards, mindless notion that (according the poster) rednecks and (as the poster called herself) white trash MADE Oprah! Now, first of all, people are people, and categorizing groups of people into such negative categories based on race and region is pathetic. Having said that, it is really important for people who think like this to get their facts straight, and the order of things straight.
No one of any race watched Oprah to “give” her anything. No one thought “huh, look at that woman. I think I’ll give her my hour today as a gift to her.” No one believed Oprah could become anything big, let alone a star or the superstar she became. And this ESPECIALLY includes many of the people that this poster was describing. No, Oprah grew and Oprah is loved because of what OPRAH offered, not the other way around. In other words, people tuned in to RECEIVE from Oprah. And for over two decades people have RECEIVED ALOT FROM OPRAH.
Aside from daily valuable information on almost any topic one can imagine, from health to dieting to finances to relationships to clothing to addictions to education to children to weddings to environmental issues to pets and animals to celebrity insights to technology to cooking to politics to hair, and on and on and on, people RECEIVED MUCH FROM OPRAH. People were given a platform to be themselves with the public, share their stories, learn from others, celebrate, cry, laugh, dance, kiss, surprise, discuss, debate and enjoy whatever topic Oprah chose for that show. They tuned in and showed up in long lines, they called in for reservations, not to give but to be given to (to receive).
And that’s just the start. We haven’t even began to calculate how many home giveaways, cash giveaways, scholarships, cars, gifts giveaways, book giveaways, clothes giveaways, discounts, coupons, vacation giveaways and FREE stuff people have RECEIVED from Oprah in the span of over two decades.
Yes, to receive something, viewers had to tune in (DUH!), a task that cost them no money. Just like if a person is thirsty, they have to open their mouth to receive the water they are drinking. They are not “giving” to the water or “making it” significant, they are receiving the benefits of what the water has to offer.
Even businesses, news outlets, advertisers, and authors came to Oprah to RECEIVE, not to give. They wanted to receive the viewership SHE drew because of what SHE offered on her show.
So please don’t think the arrogant and ignorant thought that a viewer ‘made’ Oprah. Please don’t credit her hard work, intelligence, dedication and success strictly to the passive viewer on sitting on their sofa. Yes viewers are important, but they are not the creators of anything, they are the receivers, the consumers, the customers. Viewers enjoyed the information, the entertainment, the interviews, the giveaways, the true life stories, the promotions, and whatever else she brought on that viewers watched for themselves. Oprah was and is successful because she offers her viewers QUALITY programming and QUALITY products.
It is really sad and shameful that the moment this GIVING woman makes a personal political decision for herself that some selfish people do not agree with, these self centered people decide to bash her and claim they are responsible for all of her success. Trash is not a word that should be used to describe a person, however it is a very accurate word to describe an opinion. And frankly, the opinion that some people have that THEY made Oprah is simply trash, and it really really stinks.
Upon her recent announcement that she will be ending her daytime talk show which has successfully spanned for 25 years, media Queen Oprah Winfrey has received a number of varying responses. While she does have many who are sad to see her go, whether they are shocked about it or anticipated it, there is a shameful segment of the population who have decided to make their bitter, ignorant and selfish thoughts known on blogs, youtube comments, news story comments and polls.
There are those in the media who are and have been jealous of Oprah for some time. Their inability to compete with her star power has left some of them feeling helplessly bitter. And while that is certainly no justification for hating this world humanitarian television superstar, it should not be entirely unexpected in the competitive and often dishonest world of mainstream media culture.
However, there is unfortunately another group of average, everyday “Americans” who …do not entirely process information correctly, or at least through a moral lens. Oprah Winfrey is a SELF MADE WOMAN. No one GAVE her ANYTHING! Growing up in poor humble beginnings, during a shameful racist period in our country, the thought of someone like Oprah rising to even a local management position would seem unlikely. Born in Mississippi, and raised in Tennessee, this little dark skinned black girl endured sexual abuse and also got pregnant. Flash that statistic to any average citizen, and one can just see the assumptions popping into their heads. “Oh great, another WELFARE MOM depending on the GOVERNMENT to take care of her!” NO ONE would think that background could lead to the making of one of the most powerful and influential women in the world.
From the start, people counted Oprah out. There were her early coworkers who did not want to work with a woman who looked like her (a dark skin black woman with a short afro and personality). As she mentioned in her 20th Anniversary dvd set, nearly everyone except for Gayle counted her out. They even wanted her to change her name to Suzy, because they did not think anyone would be able to relate to the name Oprah.
However Oprah never quit. She decided to embrace herself for who she was, and share herself as she was with America. She worked hard and got her own show where she shared her life story with America. She interviewed everyday Americans with an empathy, warmth and love that had not really been seen before on daytime television. People of all backgrounds felt comfortable opening up with Oprah, and sharing their story on her show. And as a result, those shows were able to touch and help people all across the country (and eventually the world) as many other people were going through similar circumstances.
Oprah never claimed to be all knowing. She brought on experts in whatever topic was being discussed to speak with guests and educate the audience. She never got bashful of sharing her strengths and weaknesses, her successes and failures with her audience. And whether she was interviewing a celebrity, a head of state, a prostitute, a teacher, a struggling family, a homeless person, a movie star, a championship team, an injured/sick or deformed person, or anyone else, Oprah always showed them the same dignity, warmth, kindness, and respect no matter who they were or what their story was.
If you hate Oprah, ask yourself, what kind of person are you? Are you human? I’m not suggesting everyone must love Oprah, nor am I demanding that everyone be her loyal viewer. But how on earth can any decent person hate this woman? Is it because you can’t control her every move, as if she personally belongs to you?
Oprah did not just give to charity, she gave to EVERYONE. She gave to people in need, as well as held huge giveaways to her audience members. Promotions through her show have boosted authors to become best selling authors, and jolted sales for American businesses to the point where corporate America coined the phrase “The Oprah Effect”. She has interviewed Al Gore and George Bush during the elections. She interviewed Bill O’reilly and Frank Rich. She has held concerts of all different music genres.
Oprah has had the Make a Wish foundation, Wildest Dreams giveaway shows, Oprah’s favorite things show. She not only gives and gives and gives, but encourages and rewards others to give. Through Oprah other unknowns have gained jobs including Dr. Phil, Dr. Oz, Rachel Ray, the employees of her magazines, the employees & actors of her films, etc.
As her show comes to a close, I hope some level of dignity comes from people and they celebrate how much this woman has accomplished despite the odds, and how many lives she has touched and helped. It would be pathetic if, through jealousy selfish ignorant people would zero in on how much money she has EARNED and get mad about her decisions AS A PRIVATE CITIZEN to support whoever she wanted to in this past election.
Every American has the right to a private life, free from the control and demand of others. And every American should be paid for their hard work and their success. Oprah became Oprah by being true to herself and helping and befriending others, no matter their status in life. It is time Oprah haters add some value to their own lives, and stop being bitter and jealous about the life of someone else.
Unlike many wealthy Americans, Oprah (like Michael Jackson) has been a giver. She didn’t bring down the economy through selfishness and risk taking like many of those on Wall Street. She didn’t go crawling to the government for aid, like AIG and the top banking execs who subsequently rewarded themselves for failing by paying themselves billions in bonus money they DID NOT DESERVE. She didn’t CHEAT people out of their money like Bernie Maddoff, or step on, kick, back-stab, or sleep her way to the top.
No, Oprah EARNED her money. She EARNED every penny of it, the old fashion, Conservative, capitalistic, American way. If you are a hater, don’t hate. Add some value to your own life, and focus on what YOU can do to be true to YOURSELF and help others.
President Sarah Palin, the 45th President of the United States of America
As awkward as it might sound, there are loyal group of Americans who anxiously await the day when they can officially say those words. There are some that think Washington (members of both parties) and the mainstream media are intimidated by the former governor of Alaska, and thus are doing everything they can to stop her from gaining power. Their belief system appears to be rooted in the notion that simply existing outside of Washington qualifies you with an overwhelming ability to change Washington.
But who amongst these people is paying attention to the facts? Who amongst these people is paying attention to Sarah Palin? I am speaking about the real Sarah Palin, the former governor of Alaska who left her position to write her personal memoir. That means she left serving the American people to serve her own bank account.
Forget the Katie Couric interviews. Forget the winking spectacle during the debates with Joe Biden. Forget the huge sums of campaign money spent on her own personal wardrobe. Forget the internal fighting with the McCain camp, and her newest public battles with her grandson’s father, Levi Johnston.
Forget her citing Alaska’s proximity to Russia as part of her foreign policy experience. Forget her inability to name a newspaper or source that she reads regularly. Forget her inability to name a Supreme Court case other than Roe vs. Wade (which was given to her in the interview) for which she had a disagreement. Forget her stepping down as governor early without any clear sound reason. Forget her bashing and mocking fruit fly research, a move that is especially ironic given that she has an autistic son. Forget her not knowing what the Bush doctrine was, or what a Vice President is supposed to do, or the fact that Africa is a continent, not a country.
Forget all of that! As hard as it may be, forget it! Let’s start from scratch.
What is this “future President” doing now for the American people? Did she visit the troops at Fort Hood? Did she make a trip to Afghanistan or Iraq? Is she working to help put Americans back to work, given the dire unemployment numbers? Is she working to use her star power to better the lives of Alaskans? Is she aiding Katrina victims, or Georgia flood victims, or California fire victims? Is she fighting for equal pay for women and minorities, or working on behalf of young children’s education? Who is she helping and how?
All I’ve seen is her in a public scuffle with Levi Johnston, public scuffles with the McCain camp, rumors of her pursuing her own talk show, her having a sit down with Oprah to promote her new book, and her lashing out at the President, former McCain staff, foes in the media, and her critics. She also gave a speech in Hong Kong to a group of investors, and now she is going on a book tour through red state America to (help them in their financial woes! Oops, no…nothing like that) encourage them to buy her book, a book about herself.
Yes Sarah Palin is about herself, but a President shouldn’t be. Yesterday was veterans day, and with a son or two in the military, I wonder how Sarah Palin spent the day? Or was that the same day she went to visit Oprah?
