Interview With Oprah Winfrey

Oprah Winfrey, the first African-American television correspondent in Nashville, Tennessee, was born into poverty and struggle and lived a childhood of abuse and neglect. Everyday, Winfrey had obstacles to conquer, similar to how everyday “from the time the Joshua tree was a tiny sapling, it had been so beaten down by the whipping wind that, rather than trying to grow skyward, it had grown in the direction that the wind pushed it” (21) because of it’s rooting. Winfrey's capacity to remain humble all through each and every crack and crevice of her life show how much of a hard-worker and how determined she is to grow and prosper, which earned her the title of being one of the richest women in the world with a net worth of three billion dollars. This compares to the Joshua tree’s toils of how it stayed alive and prospered for many years which, in the end, symbolizes perseverance and diligence to accomplish peace and balance in one’s

Oprah Winfrey has had an outstanding career and has emerged as the most significant female African American of her generation and those following her. From her early childhood Oprah has faced many obstacles and family distortions such as

Oprah Winfrey was born on January 29, 1954 in Kosciusko, Mississippi (Britannica). Oprah spent the first several years of her life at her grandmother’s farm while her unwed mother looked for work. At the age of six, she went to live with her mother in Milwaukee. Unfortunately, she left to live in extreme poverty and would also endure years of physical and sexual abuse (Elkins). During the summer, when she was nine years old, she was raped by a nineteen-year-old cousin. After that she was molested and raped throughout her adolescence by different relatives and family friends. Oprah ended up being

Although Oprah does use a portion of her wealth to support her lavish lifestyle, a large majority of the money she earns goes directly to several organizations whose goals include improving housing conditions, providing education, sanitizing water, and several other necessities that not everyone is fortunate enough to experience. One specific foundation that Oprah is very fond of, is the Angel Network. Through this network, all donations are given directly to one of many projects, one being The Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa. This project, created in 2007, provides an adequate learning environment for girls who have displayed some sort of academic talent or leadership, in the hopes of creating a strong group of female leaders (Andrews). Also, at age nine Oprah was sexually abused by a close family relatives, and became pregnant at fourteen years old. However, the baby never left the hospital and died just weeks after it was born. After struggling for years with this incredibly difficult secret, she was eventually able to confess the truth and has since inspired women all over the country. Oprah has not only contributed to multiple associations that promote the power and strength of women, but she is also a role model to young girls that have been through similar experiences and felt weak and worthless.

Oprah Winfrey is a very successful woman. She started her life in a small home that had absolutely no electricity or running water. She came from nothing which made her work so much harder and gave her motivation to be the woman she is today. Oprah never really thought about what she wanted to do with her life until she entered a beauty pageant at the age of 17. She was asked what she aspired to be when she grew up and knew that she wanted to be different than all the other girls she was competing against. They wanted to be nurses and teachers, she wanted to be a TV journalist and it just so happens that journalism is the career path she followed as an adult. Oprah fits Maslow’s criteria of self-actualization because she is a selfless person who over the course of life has gained wisdom and insight through all the experiences she has faced both good and bad , allowing her to reach an ideal level of self-wellness.

in her lifetime which helped her develop into a strong woman. She aspired to challenge

She came from a disadvantaged background but worked very hard to overcome poverty and discrimination. She was an honors student in high school, and she seemed to have a knack early on for public speaking. She stared on schools speech team. Winning a speech contest got her a scholarship TSU. Her talk show is broadcasted to all of America. Oprah became the richest women of the 20th century.

Many people believe that the life of a famous individual is throughout the ancestors, although, this is not the case with Ellen Degeneres. As stated on Biography.com, Ellen was born on January 26, 1958, in Metairie, Louisiana, to an insurance salesman and a mother. She was describes has a hyperactive kid by her parents and friends, who was always laughing and bubbling with energy. At the age of 13, her parents filed for seperation and were divorced the next year. Ellen and her mother then moved to Atlanta, Texas, where she used comedy to help her mother through the divorce. After she graduated high school in 1976, DeGeneres moved back to New Orleans where she attended University of

From the Emancipation Proclamation to the Jim Crowe laws of 1965, African Americans have been fighting for their rights, freedom and a voice in society for decades. African Americans were introduced to people, specifically Caucasians as individuals only regarded as legal property with a force placed upon them to obey others superior than them according to society. As she was used to the constant disadvantage and mistreatment displayed towards African Americans, it was an unreal moment for young Oprah Winfrey as she observed Sidney Poiter walk across the stage to accept the award of “best actor at the 36th Academy Awards”. Poiter’s award for best actor not only came as shock, moment of change in society for Winfrey but for all African Americans as Poiter became the first African American male to receive an award at the Golden Globes. In the same fashion, years later at the Golden Globes, Oprah Winfrey accepted the honorary “Cecil B. Demille” award becoming the first African American female to win the astounding award. As accepting her award, Winfrey delivered a speech that impacted not only the crowd but all those watching through her exquisite nomenclature and use of rhetorical

She stayed with the family for about a year, and during that time they bought Isabella’s and her baby’s freedom. They were finally free. During her stay though, she heard that her five-year-old son, Peter, had been illegally sold to a slave owner in the South. Even though she had no money and she was illiterate, she had courage and determination. With the help of some abolitionists, she got a lawyer and took the matter up to court. After several months, she won the court case and her son was returned to her. She was the first black woman to ever win a court case against a white man. With her two children, she moved to New York, where she joined a church. Her faith in God grew stronger, and she had a realization: She would become a preacher. On that day, she changed her name. She would travel, or sojourn, preaching about religion and abolitionism. She believed that truth is powerful and that it always prevails.Thus, her name became Sojourner Truth. Throughout the rest of her life, she traveled to Massachusetts, New York, and Connecticut. She often turned hostile, jeering crowds into hushed silences with her powerful, electrifying

I choose Bernadette “Bernie” Monette. I have known Bernie since 1978 when I moved to Parsonsfield, Maine. I always felt she was an interesting lady, and figured she would be a great person to interview. I was in the SAD 55 Adult Education visiting, since I became close to all the workers there from studying for my GED. She wants to use me as the GED programs role model, since I graduated from there and I moved on to college. I am there only student that has moved on for more learning. I asked Bernie if I could do an interview with her for my Issues in Diversity class, she was grateful that I had asked her. So I called her to set up our appointment, which was more of a visit than an interview. But, I did get a lot of information about

This essay will compare and contrast Oprah Winfrey and Ellen DeGeneres based on their lives before fame, their talk shows, and their impact on society.

In today’s day and age one of the most influential women and people is Oprah Winfrey. Oprah has had a big impact on today’s society and played a huge role in advancing it. Oprah Winfrey is a talk show host, producer, actress and philanthropist who are widely respected around the world. By becoming one of the biggest names in talk show history Oprah has paved the way for others and became one of the more popular women in talk show history. Her willingness to help others and to be sure others are guided in positive light shows how much passion she has to see the greater good in others. Oprah’s biggest role comes from helping to pursue the advancement of young women and girls. Oprah has taken the time to see to it that young women are out of poverty and opening up a brand new school for underprivileged females to see to it that they have the same opportunity that children in America and other parts of the world have. Being that African- Americans, let alone women were not seen as marketable, Oprah helped to change this dynamic early in her career by using her platform in communication to open doors for other people. Winfrey’s work over a number of years is the single most evident reason why she has been able to be successful in the field of mass communication. Oprah is one of the most influential women of our time because of how well she is able to contribute to the human rights of women and advancing them in today’s society.

Hattie laid the foundation of Oprah’s career when she taught her to read the Bible. At the age of three, Oprah spent hours reading Bible stories to the animals on the farm. Hattie also taught her many lessons about God and faith. These lessons inspired her (at that tender age itself) to become strong and help people in need. She believed that she had a higher calling and she was sent to ‘do good’ to others.

Oprah Winfrey was born January 29, 1954 in Kosciusko, Mississippi to mother Vernita and father Veron who was a barber and businessman. Oprah lived in a small farming area and endured a rocky childhood where she encountered sexual abuse by several male relatives and associates of her mother. Due to the sexual abuse, Oprah eventually moved to Nashville, Tennessee with her father. Oprah attended Tennessee State University in 1971 and started working in radio and television in Nashville. In 1976, Oprah moved to Baltimore and hosted “People are talking” for eight years where her career began to excel. It was during this time that she began her own morning show in Chicago called “A.M. Chicago”. Her “warm-hearted” personality style helped her progress from last place to first place ratings. The