Even though this might not be the most civic-minded approach to the coming election, at least Oprah is honest.
“The reason I don’t do politicians on the show is because you get that political speak thing,” she says. “You ask the question. You have a limited amount of time and politicians are usually so rehearsed that you don’t get a real answer. And so, I’m sitting there grinning, smiling, when I know I havn’t gotten the answer. And to get the answer to one question with some clarity takes so much time that I, in the past, have just not done it.”
This year, she says, Obama will be the lone presidential candidate to grace her studio. “If everybody knows I’m for Barack it would be really disingenuous of me to be sitting up there interviewing other people as though… pretending to be objective. So I won’t be doing anybody because of that, on my show.”
I hear her, but it’s not like her couch is so sacred. I mean, Tom Cruise put his feet all on it, what would it hurt to have a Hillary and John sit on it for a minute.
[WP]
I think if you have a show that caters to ppl of all political backgrounds and you want to have a candidate on their you should have them all on there. I’m sure there are lots of ppl in her audience who don’t want certain candidates shoved down their throats. Letting him use that forum as a stump is a little unfair - it’s basically a commercial for him. I guess the “equal time” laws don’t apply to talk shows??
Considering how little Americans care about politics, she could have done some good by having candidates on PRIOR to an endorsement of a particular candidate. I suppose I’d just donate anonymously to his campaign without really endorsing him publicly.
Her suit is cute. Very flattering.
And as you said, considering the people she’s had on the show, hell even Giuliani’s evil self should get a couple of minutes.
bmd, if Leno, Letterman, Colbert and Stewart open their doors to all candidates, you’d expect Oprah to as well. You know no one other than Obama will agree to go on Tyra and he shouldn’t even be doing her show.
I didn’t even think about the others until you mentioned it. Yea, Jon Stewart is obviously a liberal, but he still has on conservative candidates without seeming disingenous. I think O just doesn’t want to have anyone else on her show that’s all.
Pretty much. Leno is definitely a democrat and extremist right-wing Fred Thompson announced his candidacy on his show. Colbert and Stewart seem like libertarians some days and democrats on others.
That’s a bit disappointing to me. What will she do if he loses the primaries? Will she then endore a new candidate or will she just not vote? …it does sound a bit like she’s trying to shove Obama down her follower’s throats…
She had Schwarzenegger and his wife on a week before the recall election in California, then tried to act all disingenuous when asked about endorsing him on her show and claimed that it wasn’t political; she just happened to be friends with him and scheduled an entire hour with him right before he commandeered our state, so fuck Oprah.
That said, I don’t see why she’d be under any obligation to have on the other candidates. It isn’t a news program.
^^I forgot about that. I didn’t see it though. She’s not under obligation b/c they are not paying for airtime, but as far as I know you can’t even donate airtime to a candidate without doing so for all of them. I guess talk shows don’t fall under that rule somehow. I suppose her show is registered (with the FCC? the TV guild?) as entertainment and not news or journalism.
CNN.com has a story on Obama blowing up (even more) after he goes onto O. I’m curious what the effect is going to be?
What will happen is that people who were going to vote for Obama will vote for him and those who are voting for the rest of the candidates will be pissed that Oprah didn’t cover the other candidates. Almost everyone will view it as unfair. Even giving coverage to people in one party alone is unfair. It’s acceptable with smaller fish, but she’s Oprah, people expect more and her audience is diverse politically and otherwise.
You’re right, Daria, and your last sentence was dead on.
Hell, its a TALK SHOW and its her show, she owns the company, she produces it, its hers! She can have on her show whomever she wants. The others can get on Jon Stewart, Steve Colbert hell, Maury or Jerry Springer. Stop hatin, I’m glad she doesn’t have to compromise if she really doesn’t want to. Obama is fine as hell and I would want him on my show too!