When did Oprah jump the shark? When she said 'yes' to Obama - or 'no' to Jesus? Also, her May numbers

This is a follow-up to last week's posting about Oprah Winfrey's horrible July numbers. "Oprah" finished third and even fourth in markets across the U.S. for the first time in eons, maybe ever. Still, it was only the July 'book.' Many stations don't promote much during July because so many shows are in repeats and the May ratings book is a better indicator.

With that in mind, I decided to go back and look at the May ratings book, not just in KC but in all 53 big- and medium-sized "metered" markets tracked daily by Nielsen. Um ... those numbers aren't pretty either.

And many of you weighed in with your personal takes on when "Oprah" jumped the shark. I've reprinted some of those below. While some cited her embrace of Barack Obama, let's just say that Oprah and Rielle have a spiritual connection as well.

But first, the ratings. The whole reason "Oprah" is so fabulously rich and powerful is that TV stations make a lot of money off her. They rake in billions, and she gets her millions. Here's how it works: "Oprah" comes on the air, creates a rising tide, and all boats are lifted. Simple! Except when it doesn't happen ... then everybody gets soaked. For instance, according to Nielsen the Kansas City ABC affiliate, which has carried "Oprah" since 1988, finished second with its 5 p.m. newscast for the first time in 14 years in July.

The thinking is that, well, those were repeats (although she's done extremely well with repeats in the past). OK, so let's take it back to May. Below are the markets (Nielsen population ranking in parens) where the news following "Oprah" improved on her lead-in by at least one share point in the May book. That's the Oprah formula in reverse -- her show is supposed to be the higher number, on the assumption that some of her viewers will turn off or turn away after the show is over. But look:

(4) WPVI (Philadelphia) 1 share point improvement after "Oprah"
(5) WFAA (Dallas) 1 point
(10) KHOU (Houston) 1 point
(11) WXYZ (Detroit) 1 point
(14) KING (Seattle) 2 points
(15) WCCO (Minneapolis) 2 points
(19) WFTV (Orlando) 3 points
(20) KCRA (Sacramento) 5 points
(21) KSDK (St. Louis) 3 points
(22) WTAE (Pittsburgh) 6 points
(23) KGW (Portland) 6 points
(25) WSOC (Charlotte) 4 points
(28) WTVD (Raleigh) 2 points
(29) WFSB (Hartford) 2 points
(30) WSMV (Nashville) 1 point
(31) KMBC (Kansas City) 2 points
(32) WBNS (Columbus) 1 point
(36) WYFF (Greenville) 2 points
(37) KSAT (San Antonio) 6 points
(40) WBMA (Birmingham) 3 points
(44) KOAT (Albuquerque) 2 points
(47) WMC (Memphis) 3 points
(48) WHAS (Louisville) 3 points
(49) WJXT (Jacksonville) 2 points
(50) WIVB (Buffalo) 1 point
(51) KVUE (Austin) 3 points
(52) WJAR (Providence) 1 point
(58) WATE (Knoxville) 1 point

In more than half of the metered markets where news follows "Oprah," Winfrey wasn't delivering the goods even in May, when her show wasn't in reruns!

Why isn't this more widely noted? I think in part it's because Oprah is doing well in the big cities: New York, L.A., Atlanta and D.C. are four top-ten markets where the Oprah station gets a huge lift every day when she signs on, and a letdown when she signs off. (The conventional wisdom is that the station would be doing even worse without Oprah.) But once you start getting into smaller markets does the Oprah effect appear to be vanishing. In half of the markets ranked 11-20 and two thirds of those ranked 21-35 (including Kansas City), the afternoon newscast builds significantly off its "Oprah" lead-in. In Pittsburgh, Oprah averaged a 4.4 rating and 10 share in May, but the newscast that followed averaged a mighty 7.7 rating/16 share.

So why is middle America rejecting "Oprah"? Responses from readers suggest that at least some white evangelical women have stopped watching because of her alleged embrace of New Age spirituality and abandonment of her Baptist roots.

Kate Duckworth:

"I have heard nearly all of my friends and family say that they will never watch her show or read her magazine again due to her statements that 'there’s more than one way to heaven than through Jesus.' She has joined the ranks of those who want to 'find God within themselves,' which dismisses the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross in order to ensure our passage to heaven through forgiveness of sin. She’s been leaning this way for years but has gone too far this time and will not be winning us back unless she sincerely changes course and cleaves to the teachings she learned in Sunday School as a child (she was raised a Southern Baptist). Please keep in mind that we are not radical evangelicals or bible-thumpers and we show our Christianity more by demonstrating our faith than by beating people over the head with it. But we do know that there is only one way to heaven and we are insulted and disappointed that Oprah has chosen to believe such New Age nonsense. We will not support her influential empire which so leads vulnerable people down the wrong path."

Patricia Harves:

"One of the reasons for that is that Oprah has gone over the edge in promoting her personal New Age religion. She formerly referenced God, which many Christians, including myself, assumed to mean that she was Christian. We have learned otherwise in the last months, and no longer have any interest in watching her show."

Reba Williams:

"I was a supporter for Hillary, who would have made the best President."

Carol Kingery:

"Might I suggest that she lost a great deal of credibility when she jumped the shark by heavily promoting and sensationalizing the pregnant man story. For many years, I've seen an Oprah who stayed away from the tawdry, Jerry Springer-like stuff. Whenever she had a story that strayed over the edge, she was able to reeling it back in by showing compassion and another side of the story that the audience would never know about. I've always trusted her to inform me. But the pregnant man episode was when she jumped the shark. The lead-in commercials for it, the opening to the show... All of felt like a supermarket tabloid. It was misleading. If felt lied to. I lost a huge amount of respect for her."

Also read the comments below for a great insight from my old friend C.D. Thomas.

Comments

[Karen]

Everyone in syndication is way down but Oprah still remains #1. I know my family has been watching her more than ever.

[NOTE: I would just like to point out that
the sender actually wrote, "Everyone in syndication is way down" -- I specifically avoid using jargon like "syndication" because no one outside the industry knows what it means -- also, "she" left behind the completely believable email address of Karen@hotmail.com. --AB]

[cdthomas]

My sister and her large email circle of friends discussed this at length; Oprah, after a fairly acceptable turn toward Obama (since we're AA), completely lost that circle when she was perceived as anti-Christian and cultist.

It wasn't just Marianne Williamson, James van Praagh or James Hillman that alienated her from her doctrinare Christian audience. It was also her hosting the huckster mysticism of THE SECRET, whose underlying Do As Thou Wilt motto lends nicely to a Satanic interpretation.

Her spiritual exploration becomes the wedge between her and her audience her wealth somehow was not -- mostly due to her potlaches that combined a game show fervor to a grownup birthday party where everyone gets prezzies. If her audience believes she's laughing at them behind their backs, because she no longer believes in Jesus Christ as her personal savior, she'd lose audience share, even if she backed the second coming of Jesus for president.

[Alyse]

Oprah is a hypocrite and her viewers are finally starting to see that. Her messageboard no longer allows political discussions unless they are pro-Obama.

[c'est moi]

Oprah subscribes to doctrines that tickle the ear and deceive, whether it's her new age guff or her political pandering.
The dopes eat it up; persons with IQ's in the double digits and higher don't.

[Hank]

I wonder if, combined with the general trend in magazines lately, this downturn also has affected Oprah's magazine:

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5iAOwHGdtrdWNmBGfPLyvdOJaJnuAD92G66980

[Suzanne]

I believe the shark jumping moment came when the video of her denying that Christ is the Way. I understand that we have to be tolerant of other religions, but her tone was so mocking that I thought, 'enough'.

[Anne]

If Oprah's jumped the shark, why did Forbes magazine just name her the world's most powerful celebrity for the second year straight, and why did TV Guide just report that she earned a record $385 million this year, and why did her latest book club pick A NEW EARTH just sell a record four million copies? It's sad that people are so threatened by an influential black woman endorsing a black man for president that they would try to discredit her. And Oprah never denied Christ was a way, she denied he was the ONLY way. Those who insist Christ is the ONLY way are intolerant religious bigots who assume all non-Christains (including Jews, Muslims, agnostics & atheists are doomed to burn in hell).

[Wyn]

My regular Oprah-watching days ended shortly after she had Tom Cruise on and he jumped all over her sofa and the stage. I have never understood the appeal of an actor who is clearly a control-freak in his relationships and thinks that because he is a scientologist he can dictate how other people (i.e. Brooke Shield)can handle their own personal medical problems.

I used to TiVo this show every day--no more. The last time I watched Oprah was in Feb. when Valerie Bertinelli was the guest.

[Sara]

I never really understood what women saw in Oprah in the first place. She's such a shallow, celebrity fake to me! She has to buy her audience with fabulous free, material items. "Oh, I wish Opraha-messiah would buy me a car, too! Yes, Opraha-messiah, we will all read the latest book you assigned to your good friends, us viewers."

Anyone who ever beleived Oprah was for anyone or anything beyond Oprah; I have some oceanfront property in Arizona to sell to you - cheap! Another phoney baloney, beautiful television celebrity illusion bites the dust.

[FlaLady]

I am a middle class, middle age, caucasian female who used to admire and respect Oprah. That admiration and respect have faded. I was initially angry that she publicly supported Obama--deliberately giving him the push he needed to overcome Hillary--and that was exacerbated when it was revealed she attended the Trinity Church for several years. At least she was smart enough to leave it when she realized it could damage her image.

[Susan]

I watched Oprah for many years which stems from the fact that I was living in the Chicago area when she became famous. I really liked her then. Now I think she has absolutely no morales left at all and will say and do anything to make a buck. She is no longer the woman of reason with an open mind. She took a huge left and fell off stage. The end for me was the fact that she refused to give all candidates for president of the US equal time on her show. It is her show that is true, but it speaks of her mind-set which is closed and quite truthfully bitter. I am NOT a Bill Clinton supporter and yet when he was pushing his book before the campaign she carefully explained to the audience he could speak about the book but he was not to mention his wife. She treated him like a beggar off the street. I have never watched her since and never will again. She is gone simply mad about Hollywood and that is always a sign of somebody falling off the rails.

[Becky Kelly]

I personally stopped watching Oprah when she denied what Christ said about Himself in the Bible, John 14:6 "Jesus answered, I am the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father except through me." As a christian who believes the words of Jesus are true and trustworthy, I can not support a show that is clearly leading a whole generation away from His Truth. She has great influence over millions of people around the world on a daily basis, I pray that she re-examines her position on this and returns to her "Christian" faith position or if she doesn't I hope that followers of Christ will not support her show any longer.

[Thomas]

The big drops in Portland and Sacramento are hard to pin on religion, aren't they?

[Mo]

Doesn't everyone in TV have a fall-off in viewership after a time? I think Oprah has held up WAY longer than most. Why is it a surprise that people will look for the next thing? American culture is saturated with "celebrities" like Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. Oprah's show actually asks people to think. Now that I think about it, it is STUNNING that she has lasted as long as she has!

[Margaret]

Did you check to see what was her competition in major markets? See if any of those stations made changes in their programming in the last two years to compete with Oprah.

[Debbie]

I have not watched o and have canceled my subscription after having it since the begining. The only way he wins this election is with Hillary, his foreign policy has already shown that he is not going to be up to par unless he can solve it over a game of basketball. McCain's commercials have been very effective. Hillary was right when she said she was the canidate that could go head to head with McCain. Obama doesn't have a clue about what these debates are going to be. Having Bill Clinton for an enemy is not a good thing and he sure has made him one. The press always called her Hillary never Senator Clinton, but it was always Senator Obama. If he gets to the white house, i'm not sure that we're going to be much better off than with Bush at the Helm. We'll maybe a little better. He's too inexperienced. As for Oprah, she picked a BAD time to OWN a network.

[Patti]

I used to TiVo Oprah and found many of her programs interesting. I started falling away when this supposed "everyperson" continually fawned all over every hollywood person that came to her show. Of course her great friends Julia Roberts, Jennifer Anniston, Tom Cruise..... give me a break. Aren't there some non hollywood types that she has anything in common with or can relate to, or is her link to commonality fame and money?
I also found the political push to Obama over the edge, especially when she did not give any of the other candidates equal time on her show. Her pose as the way and the light to spiritual enlightenment and political greatness is way too much for me.

[Tania]

I for one have been watching Oprah far MORE since she endorsed Obama & started buying her magazine to boot. I think he's an absolutely brilliant and exciting candidate and I think Oprah's absolutely brilliant for backing him. And if Oprah's ratings are down why is her talk show still number one according to the latest ratings? I think Oprah is absolutely brilliant to have completely dominated such a competitive and improvisational industry for 22 years, and if I was as rich and influential as she was, I'd be expressing myself politically too. Fame is useless unless you have the courage to stand up for you believe in! Rock on Oprah! You're a role model to us all!

[debbie]

It's sad that Oprah made all her millions on other people's misfortunes. When she promoted Obama and her new age religion all around the same time period is when I didn't want to hear anything else either had to say. Folks, America has been very kind to African Americans in the past 20 years. After hearing Jeremiah Wright and Oprah's new religion is when I woke up. I'm afraid that white America has been sleeping while our black fellowmen have been preaching DAMN America for the past 20 years. I wonder how many blacks have chosen to become muslims in the past 20 years? I now see racism for what it really is. It is black on black racism. It is so vile they have sold the souls of their own people for money. Hope Wright, Oprah, and Farrakahn enjoy their millions.

[Howard]

From spending several years in Jeremiah Wright's anti-American racist church, listening to sermons like "God Damn America", and giving life time achievement awards to the likes of Louis Farrakhan ... to her newest nut job beliefs ... who could possibly take Oprah seriously? This woman's ego is soooo big, being a billionaire celebrity isn't enough, she has to start her own religion ... not to mention all the additional money she is going to make selling all those book, tapes, CD's, etc. to her poor followers. I think it's time for America to deny Oprah access to our television sets.

[Patrizia]

Obama was bad enough, that started the turn, but I wasn't quite off the ship yet...Then came the obsession with the new age crazy vibe.. but this was not new.. if you notice she gets on this guru chase every few years (remember Gary Zukoff and her insane obsession with Tina Turner?)

What did it for me was when she walked out of an Obama speech crying her "eyelashes" off with Kanye West.. a man who said George Bush hates white people, after Katrina (IF WEST HAD HALF A BRAIN HE WOULD KNOW IT WAS THE LA GOVERNOR THAT HELD UP FEDERAL AID NOT BUSH) He had also appeared on the cover of Rolling Stone with a crown of thorns with blood trickled down in a depcition of Jesus and compared himself to the savior.. She aligns herself with some very shady people.

I have also noticed that in the last few years tends to talk over her guests, this started to annoy me. She would have an interesting topic, ask the person a question , proceed to answer it herself and keep talking.. I can't tell you how many times I said SHUT UP to the screen.. LOL , I don't want her take on it, i wanted to hear the guest.

Then she got on that kick with "past life regression" okay I am open to some things and it is fine to do a show to see other opinions but when a woman in the audience questioned it, Oprah said "JUST because YOU don't believe it does not mean its not true". I forgot Oprah has all the answers.. how dare that woman question her... she also told a story on her show (and radio show) where she talked about her grandmother working for white people and mentioned how she now had white people working for her.. that did not go over too well with the audience, nor should it. Let one white person make that comment about a black, we would be considerered racist.

As far as the person who posted she was Forbes most wealthy.. who cares what some magazine said. There are those that will worship at the alter of Oprah, and for a while I liked and admired her.. I think, in short, Ms Winfrey has forgotten who she is... or at least was while she was likable

[Jacob]

As a man I've never seen the appeal of Oprah. There are people that I respect and admire but I would never blindly follow their beliefs, words, or whatever. To me, Oprah and her followers have always come off as a cult. Now that her views have strayed people are realizing it and rejecting it. Make up your own damn minds people.