When Newsweek asked this question this week, I was so mad. My gut reaction was it's Oprah's company, she can hire who she wants. In the communications business, people usually hire who they know. That reputation comes from who you know and the quality of work produced. All of America knows Oprah's work is that of high quality.
My second reaction was a bit complicated. Oprah has been accused of placating too much to white audiences. She doesn't roll her neck or sound black enough for her black audiences. While black audiences don't support her financially white ones do.
Her show debuted at number one on January 1, 2011. And it's excellence shocked a lot of critics. The fact that Oprah showcased her team
was a surprise to many: the majority of her staffers were white. That comes as no surprise to me. I've always been the only one (black person) on staff wherever I worked. I'm used to it because communications/media is not a very diverse area.
Again, you hire who you know. When Oprah was carving out her network dream, she gathered who she knew who were part of her team. It wasn't deliberate. We know she's not racist.
The fact that Almighty O has few black employees sends a mixed message to media outlets. It says that Oprah may be suggesting that black people can't do the job or she can't find quality black employees. All I know is that Oprah is working in an industry that's changing and evolving. What her message says to me is two-fold. One she can't find them. The field is too competitive. And more stations need to provide more opportunities. And two. It's her OWN network and she can hire whoever the heck she wants.
To hold her to a different standard isn't fair. Frankly, this is a question many station owners should have been asked years ago and done something about it then.
Posted By: Marsha Jones
Wednesday, February 2nd 2011 at 11:32PM
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