With 2011 coming to a close, Oprah Winfrey can look to the new year and only hope that her brainchild network OWN sees better days. A third quarter earnings report revealed the network is losing millions and ratings are down. And just last week, execs toyed with the idea of targeting Blacks to get viewership up. The strategy was met by mixed reviews.
In an exclusive interview with TV Guide, Winfrey discusses the hardships of starting the network, its future and the plans she has for herself.
On launching OWN…
“It’s been challenging and eye opening. I walked in thinking, ‘Oh, it’s going to be about programming.’ But there’s so many more layers to building this business, including trying to get affiliates and advertisers. I am focusing on my strength, which is my connection to the audience. This show is my way of building outreach in that way, as was Life Class, which I’ll be taking to colleges around the country. If anyone needs direction in their life, it’s a college kid!”
On reaching her audience…
“We are building one show at a time. I know you’re going to ask, what I would do over if I could. From day one, I said, let’s not blow our horns too loud. So if I had it to do over, I would do is exactly what I am attempting to do now: build one night, one show at a time. I would have said, ‘Give me a couple of years to launch an entire network, but right now what I’m doing is Saturday night or Sunday night. Then when I’m ready, watch me Tuesday and Wednesday nights.’ That’s part of the learning curve.”
On the future of OWN…
“I refuse to be discouraged. This is the thing about being well-known and trying to do anything. When I did The Color Purple, Steven Spielberg taught me you can’t believe the good [press] unless you’re also willing to believe the bad. That’s a powerful lesson for not getting distracted by praise — or criticism. You can’t allow either of them to affect your vision of what you know is true for you. That’s exactly how I feel right now. My thing is stay on course so you can stay the course.”
On her future endeavors…
“I’m also thinking seriously about movies again and looking at scripts. I have some upcoming projects at HBO that I’m really excited about acting in.”