Oprah Winfrey Show Coming To An End in 2011
Video After The Jump
Wall Street Journal Reports
Oprah Winfrey plans to end her syndicated television show in September 2011 as she turns her attention to a new cable-television channel she plans to launch with Discovery Communications Inc.
Ms. Winfrey told her staff of her decision on Thursday, according to a person familiar with the matter. She plans to make an official announcement Friday morning on her talk show, according to a spokeswoman for Ms. Winfrey's Chicago-based Harpo Inc.
The move is a big blow to the syndicated television market in which Ms. Winfrey has long been a juggernaut. "The Oprah Winfrey Show," launched in syndication in 1986, averaged 6.6 million viewers in the week ended Nov. 8, according to Nielsen Co.
Local TV stations, which use Ms. Winfrey to anchor daytime hours, could smart from her move. Even as advertisers have cut budgets in the past year, Ms. Winfrey's show has been among the few whose rates have held steady, according to one ad buyer.
"In our market, she does extremely well and always has," said Barry Smith, director of programming and creative services for KFMB-TV, a CBS affiliate in San Diego, Calif., that is owned by Midwest Television Inc. "It's going to be a task" to replace her, Mr. Smith added.
Ms. Winfrey's decision also represents a hit to CBS Corp., which distributes her show in syndication. "We look forward to working with her for the next several years, and hopefully afterwards as well," CBS said.
The loss of Ms. Winfrey's show will be missed in particular by the book publishing industry. "It's a blow," said Lorraine Shanley, a partner in the consulting firm Market Partners International Inc., who earlier this week watched former Alaska governor and Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin promote her book on Ms. Winfrey's show.
"Oprah Winfrey has supported many authors, and her book club has had a huge impact on America's reading habits," added Ms. Shanley. "She made Faulkner a best seller again. She also promoted an eclectic group of authors and created publishing successes for many commercial writers."
"If it is the end of her daily talk show, we probably won't see something else to match its overall potential impact on book sales in the broadcast arena any time soon," said Stuart Applebaum, a spokesman for Bertelsmann AG's Random House publishing arm. "She has an integrity and connectivity to her viewership that is unmatched by any other television broadcast personality. Happily she enjoys reading books and wants to persuade her viewership to enjoy them as much as she does. It's not a characteristic shared by any other TV personalities with her persuasiveness."
Ms. Winfrey is likely to turn her attention to her new television network, OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network, which she announced with Discovery Communications in January 2008.
The new channel is structured as a 50-50 joint venture between Ms. Winfrey and the cable programmer, which will replace its little-watched Discovery Health channel with the new offering.
"I will be involved in every single element of programming," Ms. Winfrey said at the time.
Since then, the network's launch has been delayed. It is now expected to launch in January of 2011, according to a person familiar with the matter. Ms. Winfrey and the network also expect to announce some plans for the new network in coming weeks, the person said.
Earlier this month, OWN named Lisa Erspamer, a veteran producer at Harpo, as its chief creative officer. Ms. Erspamer, a co-executive producer of "The Oprah Winfrey Show" since 2006, will be based at OWN's Los Angeles headquarters, according to a press release.
In January, OWN hired former MTV president Christina Norman as chief executive. She took over from Tom Freston, a former Viacom CEO and MTV veteran who has served as a consultant for the network, according to people familiar with the situation.
Comment
-
Comment by Ramses on November 23, 2009 at 11:56pm - its about fucking time!!!! i hate oprah she shouldnt do anything else anymore nobody likes her
-
Comment by smoky on November 23, 2009 at 8:28am - wow dats gr8 i ws gttin tired of her old ass fuck opra n her hatin ass,go suck adick 4 a chanhe biatch
-
Comment by marlay650 on November 23, 2009 at 2:04am - tis the beginning of the end of the world the mayans are right
-
Comment by Shorty Blade on November 21, 2009 at 5:08pm - who da fuck cares its about time she burry the show..bitch dont care about the poor anyway , i aint see her giving out free cars to the hood..how u give free shit away to motherfuckas that dont even need it..peace oprah nobody will miss u..accept "white america" ofcourse
-
Comment by J-Scrilla on November 21, 2009 at 4:53pm -
bout time!
that shit older than im iz
-
Comment by osixx on November 21, 2009 at 2:16pm - thas crazy
-
Comment by Draque Clark on November 21, 2009 at 11:28am - its about time she stops brainwashing middle class america, her old ass needs to retire anyways lol they already brought in tyra the new oprah lol she talks about bullshit too
-
Comment by Mz. B. on November 21, 2009 at 10:35am - oprah's old as shit anyways, it's about time she calls it quits. maybe once her shows over she'll become a black lady again! lol!
-
Comment by FAH BHLAQQ on November 21, 2009 at 10:34am - since he couldnt be on her show, 50 need to hop on abc with his own show AS SOON AS oprah old azz retire in '11...dat a be da smartest move ever
-
Comment by Delroy Mbofana on November 21, 2009 at 8:24am - oprah can go suk dic
Welcome to
ThisIs50.com
The #1 Entertainment Blog Community! "BEFORE I SELF DESTRUCT" OUT NOW! JOIN and become a member to access exclusive content!
ad
Badge
Latest Activity
Forum
Post Your Blog Entry Here
You think you can write?
You think your blog deserves coverage?
Are you always up on the new music, rumors, pictures and videos before everyone else?
Shine on THISIS50.COM, and get YOUR blog entry featured on the front page...
Paste a link to your blog here
We will feature the best ones on the blog on the home page of Thisis50.com
No need to put it many times!! 1 time is enough .. our team will review this discussion many times a day
1 discussions
Post Your Discussion Here
You think you have interesting topics to share?
You think your discussion is worth being on top of the forums?
Do you post exclusive or funny content before everyone else?
Shine on THISIS50.COM, and get YOUR discussion entry featured on the top of the forums...
Paste a link to your discussion here.
We will feature the best ones on the top on the forums on Thisis50.com
No need to put it many times!! 1 time is enough .. our team will review this discussion many times a day.
Also, if you see any spam on the forums, you can let us know here and we will take care of it.
Note: Every few days discussions get unfeatured and new ones get featured, so no need to ask us why it's not on top anymore ;)
1 discussions
Ask 50 Cent a question
Here is the OFFICIAL category to post your questions for 50 Cent. He will answer them LIVE any time he wants on the INTERACT section: Watch 50 Cent LIVE
1 discussions
ad
© 2010 Created by 50 Cent
You need to be a member of ThisIs50.com to add comments!
Join this Ning Network