Oprah Winfrey to End Her Talk Show

By Brian Stelter

The media mogul Oprah Winfrey will end her daytime talk show, “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” in 2011 as she prepares to start a cable channel of her own.

Oprah Winfrey will end her talk show in September 2011.Larry Downing/Reuters Oprah Winfrey will end her talk show in 2011.

A spokeswoman for Ms. Winfrey’s production company, Harpo, confirmed Thursday evening that Ms. Winfrey would make an announcement on her show on Friday. The plans were first reported by WABC, the ABC station in New York City.

“The sun will set on the Oprah show as its 25th season draws to a close on Sept. 9, 2011,” Tim Bennett, the president of Harpo, said in a message to affiliates.

After her broadcast talk show winds down, Ms. Winfrey will concentrate on her coming cable channel, OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network. OWN will have its premiere in January 2011, according to a person with knowledge of Ms. Winfrey’s decision who insisted on anonymity.

Ms. Winfrey, 55, informed her talk show staff of her decision on Thursday afternoon. The television world had expected that she would make a decision about the fate of her program by the end of the year.

Ms. Winfrey told her staffers that she will not transfer the show to cable. She is expected to produce new programs for OWN, and may appear on some of them.

In a statement, CBS Television Distribution said, “We have the greatest respect for Oprah and wish her nothing but the best in her future endeavors. We know that anything she turns her hand to will be a great success. We look forward to working with her for the next several years, and hopefully afterwards as well.”

OWN is a joint venture between her production company and Discovery Communications. Getting the channel off the ground has proved challenging amid management turnover and an uncertain advertising climate.

The timeline for OWN will theoretically give Ms. Winfrey about nine months to promote her cable channel on her existing show.

Sometimes called the Queen of Talk, Forbes estimates Ms. Winfrey’s net worth to be $2.7 billion. “The Oprah Winfrey Show” is the most successful talk show in syndication, reaching about seven million viewers a day. It has been vital to the success of ABC, whose local station group has been the primary home of the show since it started in syndication in 1986.

Comments are no longer being accepted.

Ralph November 19, 2009 · 6:39 pm

Yay! With any luck Optimum will not choose an Oprah channel over something like BBC America, and I will never have to be aware of Oprah again. It’s hard to imagine a more intellectually destructive force in our society than Oprah, aside from Republicans and other right-wing loonies.

JohnnyAloha November 19, 2009 · 6:39 pm

Love her or hate her, Ms. Winfrey has forever changed the look and feel of television. Cheers, Oprah, and thank you for twenty-five years of excellence.

reader November 19, 2009 · 6:47 pm

Anyone remember the “are you an idiot” look Oprah gave the African American woman in her audience who stood up and questioned the justification for going to war with Iraq.

ABC November 19, 2009 · 6:49 pm

She will do well at any venture..
Go Oprah…..

Chris M November 19, 2009 · 6:50 pm

Oprah lost me as a fan the minute she endorsed Obama and refused to interview Palin during the campaign. I wonder who she expects to watch her OWN network….all the Obamamaniacs who are now unemployed?

Jennifer November 19, 2009 · 6:51 pm

It was a good run, but Oprah had become too Oprah, if that makes sense. At some point, one can be too iconic.

andy November 19, 2009 · 6:51 pm

i always said she wouldn’t amount to much

Don Quijote November 19, 2009 · 6:51 pm

Oprah Winfrey to End Her Talk Show… and start ten more talk shows.

David Chowes, New York City November 19, 2009 · 6:51 pm

Oprah has and always will do it . . .

her way . . .

Gail November 19, 2009 · 6:54 pm

We all know she just rocks. I love her.

Amom November 19, 2009 · 6:54 pm

Good Luck Oprah!

karen November 19, 2009 · 6:55 pm

It’s a pity that Oprah seems to be abandoning the audience that helped to build her career. By migrating to cable, she will be losing those viewers who can’t afford cable but who have been loyal fans for decades.

Momlee November 19, 2009 · 6:56 pm

Funny how her ratings seemed to tank right after she announced support for Obama. Maybe now with the OWN network Obama will be a daily guest.

Ross Peeler November 19, 2009 · 6:57 pm

The most dangerous woman, not only on television, but in society today. Her money, her influence and her political string pulling is well hidden behind her “one-of-the-girls” facade. Her star is about to achieve supernova status much to the determent of us all.

Reader November 19, 2009 · 6:59 pm

“OWN.” I love it. Her canny decision to own her TV show was the beginning of her big success.

Richard November 19, 2009 · 6:59 pm

Her show will do well where ever she goes, but the network model of television is fading. There is no reason for her to have a whole channel on cable when viewers and the ad model are moving online. In a short time the importance will be less about branding a network and more about the show itself.

NYCGAL November 19, 2009 · 7:02 pm

WHO CARES?! READ A BOOK PEOPLE!

CKN November 19, 2009 · 7:04 pm

Gotta agree with comment #1, and disagree with #2. Phil Donahue created the daytime talk show, not Oprah. Sure, she was the first black female daytime talk show host, but certainly not the first black woman on TV or even the first to have her own show.

Herbert November 19, 2009 · 7:05 pm

“The Oprah Winfrey Show” remains the most successful talk show in syndication, reaching about seven million viewers a day.

Wow, talk about the golden touch…she has a built in audience, who will gladley follow her to cable….ka ching!!!

Noprah November 19, 2009 · 7:05 pm

Finally is right! So sick and tired of the World According to Oprah! She needs to disappear (but won’t) from the landscape of American culture. Please Lord, make it so!

Julie Spira November 19, 2009 · 7:05 pm

Oprah, we welcome you to Los Angeles with open arms.

Karen November 19, 2009 · 7:09 pm

Not a minute too soon; good riddance to one of the biggest (no pun intended) hypocrites of all time!

Jim November 19, 2009 · 7:09 pm

What about SPN? The Sarah Palin Network on cable. It will have shows on how to skin a moose, how to help your unwed daughter get pregnat and other useful items.