By Reginald Culpepper
For years, she has invaded our living rooms. She has, at times, leapt out of the TV set and entered our hearts and minds. She has that kind of power and she doesn’t even have to know you or be within your locality. Her power and influence is felt around the world – and I’m sure if there were aliens receiving her broadcast, they probably were influenced not to invade Earth. For decades, she has blasted through the airwaves and cable cords with a huge following. It did not matter what race, creed, or color – her audience has been captivated by her words and content of her shows.
Yes, Oprah, you are that person.
She has received so many thanks from fans and friends that it is astounding. There has been thanks given in person, thanks on the internet, thanks on the streets, thanks on the bus, thanks in the air, and thanks in prayers from millions of people. From the words of Jada Pinkett-Smith on one of Oprah’s final tapings, “Thank you for the 25 years that you have given of you. And I know you don't have children of your own, but you have mothered millions.”
For those who will suddenly feel as though a huge, gaping hole is starting to form directly in the middle of their chest, do not despair. Hope is only a few button clicks away. Although Oprah will be ending her day-time talk program on ABC after 25 years, she will still be working hard on her new cable network, Oprah Winfrey Network, or OWN, which launched in January 2011. It will not be as intense as her ABC show, but I’m sure she will put everything into it to make it a success while at the same time, giving her extra free time to actually enjoy life even more.
Yes, we may miss her beaming face that we are so used to seeing everyday on the tube, but she will definitely still be lit in our hearts everyday. I’m guessing OWN will be getting a nice ratings boost in the next few months, especially when Oprah starts appearing on new programming that should be set to air with Oprah’s new availability.
I do not watch Oprah’s show as religiously as most, but I know what we have witnessed in the last 25 years was one for the history books. I know that probably most of the people that I have came in contact with may have at some point in their life watched the show and came away with something uplifting, something motivating, something intuitive, something great, or something that made them feel fantastic for the day.
So from one HBCU alum to another, I want to say thank you, Oprah. Thank you for your time, your dedication, your success, and even your failures so that we may learn from them. Thank you for giving us 25 years of yourself for the greater good of the human race.
Thank you!
Posted By: How May I Help You NC
Friday, May 27th 2011 at 1:28PM
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