Obama-backer Oprah says no Sarah Palin on her TV show

Oprah Winfrey, the billionaire TV talk-show diva who is supporting the Democratic presidential nominee, says she will not allow the Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin on her daily show, which is widely viewed by women.

The 44-year-old Palin is the first female nominee on a Republican presidential ticket in the party's 164-year history, though she is little-known outside Alaska, where she was elected a reform governor in 2006.

Palin, a former high school basketball star and beauty pageant contestant, is the mother of five, an outdoorswoman and part owner in her husband Todd's commercial fishing business.

This past year Oprah endorsed Barack Obama for president. It was the first time she became publicly involved in politics.

Oprah emceed numerous rallies for the freshman Democrat senator in key caucus and primary states, drawing large crowds, donations, media coverage and many new volunteers. She also hosted a lucrative fundraiser at one of her homes, near Santa Barbara. But she has so many we can't count 'em.

Oprah's political involvement, as noted previously by...

...The Ticket, hurt her in TV ratings, though she remains clearly the most-watched such show.

Many commentors on Ticket items expressed resentment that Winfrey, who made her fortune off appealing to women, would desert the first serious female candidate to vie for her party's nomination, Hillary Clinton, another Democrat, in favor of a male candidate, Obama. She also did not have Clinton on her program during the campaign.

TMZ, the widely-read celebrity website, asked Winfrey about having Palin on her program to describe her life and views to other American women.

In a post earlier today, TMZ said Winfrey replied, "There has been absolutely no discussion about having Sarah Palin on my show."

According to TMZ, Winfrey also said: "At the beginning of this presidential campaign when I decided that I was going to take my first public stance in support of a candidate, I made the decision not to use my show as a platform for any of the candidates."

Winfrey also said she would "love" to have the Republican candidate on her show, but only after the Nov. 4 election, which pits the Illinois Democrat Obama against Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain.

Winfrey has had Obama on her program two previous times, in January 2005 and again in the fall of 2006 shortly before he announced his presidential candidacy.

What do Ticket readers think? Is this fair? Would you watch an Oprah show with Palin and/or Obama? Do you still watch Oprah's program in the first place?

-- Andrew Malcolm

Photo credits: Associated Press

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Comments

[Loprah]

I'd love to see Sarah on the show. We all know Oprah endorses Obama, but come on - this is monumental!

[dave]

who cares about Oprah. Let's get Palin in front of real journalists to ask real questions. It's a farce that she has been the R nominee for a week and she has not availed herself to the press. It's shameful and unamerican.

[Laura]

I like (and watch) Oprah (although I prefer the less tabloidesque stories). It's not Meet the Press that's not having any candidates on the show -- it's a daytime talk show whose primary purpose is not politics.

[john galt]

I hope McCain and Palin whip Obama, but it is Oprah's show. She can have whomever she wants on it.

[pkb]

Good for you Oprah!!! It's your show and you show 'em!

[whocares]

SHE'S JUST LIKE OBAMA..WALK ON WATER? DON'T THINK SO!!
SHE MAY BE RICH BUT SHE DOES NOT SWAY ME AT ANYTIME. GULLIBLE IGNORANT OPRAH FOLLOWER'S ARE LIKE ''JIM JONE'S" AND HIS KOOL-AID.
NO ONE IS EVER LARGER THAN OUR MAKER !!!

[LovetheOprahShow]

I love Oprah's show! I get so much great info. And just because women appeals to women doesn't mean she can't support a man...my goodness she's not a man hater. I totally understand why she made her decision to not use her show as a platform after deciding which candidate she would support. She should appear on CNN or MSNBC or something like that.

[lee]

Tut, tut, Opes. Millions watched both Obama AND Palin speak, and Hillary Clinton was popular among women. We can draw our own conclusions, but I smell bias.

[Lisa Magno]

Operah claims to be for strong woman? Well she seems to a bit of a racist. How dare she claim to believe in woman empowerment. The only thing she empowers is her bank account!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Nate Gray]

Oprah is a racist. Blacks were shut out wrongly for hundreds of years. Now that they are in the game (a great thing) Oprah decides to be a racist. Showing her true colors I guess. Disgusting really.

Obama twice on her show but nothing for the white people. Nuff said. She is dead to me.

Racist screaming racism.

[RGV]

Why are we surprised! When she has built her career "talking" about the greatness of women she again shows her bias against other strong political women. She supported Bill Clinton but dissed Hillary Clinton over a a very male Obama. Maybe women will now see Oprah for whom she really is. Please don't say she will not use her show as a platform not when Michelle Obama did appear on the show.

[Brenda]

Come on Oprah. Why make yourself appear racist by having Obama on your show twice and then not show the same respect for John Mccain? What are you afraid of? Possibly that your candidate is an empty jacket and unable to measure up unless he is overexposed in the media. I watch your show but I am losing respect for you and your bias. That is the thing that drives your viewers is that you seemed real and trustworthy.

[candy]

It's disappointing that Oprah allows her bias to prevent her from applauding the first nomination of a woman without political or financial connections and based solely on her own merits for the second highest office in the country.

Has Orah forgotten that, not very long ago, women were considered to be property of their husbands and cruel beatings were acceptable? Or that American women of ANY color were denied the right to vote for 55 YEARS after American black males received that priviledge?

Has Oprah also forgotten that it is women who have been the real "community organizers" in most of America's cities and towns through the decades, improving the quality of life for all?

Obviously, she has.

[Libby]

So much for Oprah.

Hanging her star on Obama.

Watch the audience leave.

He will go down in flames as the evidence of his voter fraud campaign turn into dozens of lawsuits and the people who have not all ready figured it out, do realize that he is a Trojan Horse, empty suit, who is bought and paid for by people with very un-American interests.

He chose his way and it is about to catch up with him. ACORN, Soros, Rezko, Ayers, Wright, and on the list goes, 20 years deep, to the people that no one in America should want in charge of the most powerful seat in this nation. Barack Obama does not want to represent the U.S., he wants to exploit it for himself and his friends, just as he has always done.

The Rev. Wright is correct when he said Obama still believes the same, he just has to say different because he is a politician.

Even Michelle said he was smelly and did nothing. She wanted to meet that Other Barack that everyone else talks about. There is no other Barack. He just hides well in public behind his speeches.

[Steve Rhodes]

Don't state as fact that Oprah's ratings are down because of her endorsement of Obama. Her ratings have gone up and down before.

Some people complaining on her message boards doesn't represent her broader audience.

Also, be more skeptical about reporting ratings numbers in general. TV ratings are seriously flawed.

Obama had over 10,000 viewing parties and the ratings don't take one time gatherings like that into account.

There also was no measurement of the online audience for the speeches.

[coolrepublica]

I think this is a bigger problem for Oprah than she thinks. But she has so much money I don't think she cares.

Oprah has always been thought of as the post-racial woman. She is (was) about woman issue first and foremost. But with the Obama situation some people started thinking that maybe race is more important to her. I know Obama has been on there twice. How many times has Hillary been on? She endorsed Obama and said that she would walk and knock on doors for him to get him elected. She even anointed him "The One."

Many women were angry at what they saw as a betrayal but many forgave her. But the Sarah Palin situation is reinforcing thoughts in their heads they thought were gone. Maybe Oprah is more race centric than Oprah even realize.

I don't even know what Sarah would go on her show anyway. Why would she go somewhere she knows that there was going to be an ambush. I wouldn't. I want Sarah to stay as far away from Oprah's couch as possible.

[Hana]

Palin would not appear on the show anyway--she might have to answer actual questions, not just read a speech off of a telepropter.

[Cindy smith]

Sarah Palin doesn't need Oprah's show to reach women voters! Who cares what Oprah thinks?? Anyone who "cried their eyelashes off" watching Obama speak has issues! I think her excessive adoration of him is a little strange. I'm sure Governor Palin will have enough interviews with true journalists. Oprah isn't one of them.

[Republican Woman]

I like Oprah - don't like her politics. But that's the free market, which I really believe in. It's her show.

[VictoriaM.]

Oprah isn't just supporting Obama. She does not want an extremist, right wing Republican to sit with her and chit chat, period. However, if Oprah asked the right questions, women everywhere would see just how out of touch with the real world Sarah is. I say, put her on the spot and make her say in front of millions of women that she does not believe in abortion for a pregnant rape victim or a child victim of incest. Make her talk about stem cell research (she opposes it)...teaching Creationism in public schools (she is for it)....how she doesn't think Global Warming is caused by humans. Show the bloody carcasses of the defenseless animals she hunts and kills just for kicks and remind the viewers how she said God led us to Iraq and how she opposes sex education in the schools. (Abstinence worked so well in her family). Oprah could chew her up and spit her out. What say you, Oprah?

[Greg in LA]

Good for Oprah! If Palin wants some free air time for her lies, maybe she should, I don't know, give interviews to the press. Until then, she's just a cynical gimmick, and another corrupt GOP politician.

[nick]

this is clearly racial. Oprah goes all out for the first black presidential candidate but no one else- woman? no way. maybe other black women- it would be ok. The question is: why is it that most black people can vote for a black candidate and it's not racial? But vice versa and it's racist.

[LIsa M.]

People who are calling Oprah a racist for not having Palin on her show are desperate idiots. Saying
"how dare she call herself a supporter of strong women" is also idiotic. You can't think of what to say, because she has the right to do whatever she wants to do, so you call her a racist. Obviously you just want to see race in everything. Do you think it could possibly be about something OTHER than race you dodo brains? Maybe its about political issues, hmmmmmm? But then again, thinking about actual political issues is much too much of a stretch for your feeble brains, so all you can do is call out nonsensical insults. Pathetic, brainless, republican sheep who can't think for themselves. . .

[No Oprah fan]

I stopped watching Oprah a long time ago. When she decided to take a political stance so publicly,she lost my respect. Especially since she had openly told Hillary that she should run for President and that she would support her, then when a black man arrived in the running she swtiched sides without batting her false eyelashes, I have no respect for hypocrites. She has become successful on the backs of white women viewers, has always supported women's causes until one ran for president when she decided she would rather vote by race then by support her own gender. Shame on her!

[j.jay]

I sure am glad that Oprah is not showing Mrs. Palin on her show----it only helps to show how her show is not really about women---it's about race.