A Rare Glimpse of Oprah's Ugly Side

Call me naive, but I always had a high opinion of Oprah Winfrey. Right up until yesterday.

It's not that I bought into the myth of Saint Oprah as a creature of pure wisdom and benevolence. But I did think she was extraordinarily smart -- smart enough always to recognize where her short-term and long-term interests diverged; smart enough to know how much of her brand value is tied up in a perception of near-absolute honesty and ethicality. Her exquisitely-timed pirouette in the James Frey saga was just one example of an uncanny ability to divine where her fans want her to come down on an issue. She has perfect emotional pitch.

Man, did she blow it with her show on If I Did It, the O.J. Simpson book.

Winfrey tried to spin the show as a serious look at "a moral, ethical dilemma." In truth, the dilemma she faced was all business: Airing a segment on the book, with family members of the victims, would make for big ratings, but it might also turn off fans to be seen endorsing something most people find loathsome, however strong their morbid curiosity about it.

Hyping the controversy while wringing her hands over it was Winfrey's attempt to have it both ways. "I don't want to be in the position to promote this book because I, too, think it's despicable," she averred. "I'm all for it being published, but I personally wouldn't want to be in a position to encourage people to buy this book."

What transparent bullshit. No human being alive has more influence over what books people buy. A segment on The Oprah Winfrey Show has to be good for tens of thousands of copies; saying it's controversial, I'd guess, only increases the effect. I'm glad to see I'm not the only one calling her out for her uncharacteristic lapse into obvious insincerity.

A second sign that Oprah's not as smart as I thought she was: getting caught red-handed engaging in some emotional arm-twisting with a guest. Did she forget that Denise Brown, unlike virtually everyone else in her life, didn't have to sign a non-disclosure form?