Oprah Winfrey admits jumpstarting OWN is a struggle
CLUTCH - Although Oprah was already a billionaire and a household name, she says she wanted to create OWN to further her inspirational vision...
Much has been said about Oprah’s network, OWN. Although she launched the network amid much fanfare and excitement, since it hit cable airwaves, OWN has struggled to connect with viewers. Unlike her popular show which made it way into tens of millions of homes every day, OWN has had a difficult time maintaining Oprah’s vast audience.
Recently, Oprah sat down with Extra’s AJ Calloway to talk about the students at her all-girls school in South Africa (they’ve all graduated and are heading to college!), and the trouble she’s had turning OWN into a success.
Although Oprah was already a billionaire and a household name, she says she wanted to create OWN to further her inspirational vision.
“The reason I did OWN was I wanted to continue the platform to speak to people in a way that made them feel inspired,” she told Calloway. “And that’s been harder than I thought it would be, but it’s also been as exciting as I thought it would be.”
After her network showed garnered disappointing ratings, Oprah became more visible hosting life classes with Iyanla Vanzant and introducing her latest show, Oprah’s Next Chapter, which has been a hit with viewers. But will it save OWN?
That remains to be seen, but Oprah thinks it’s a good start.
“Yes, that’s nice, a good start. Now I just need 23 more hours a day, but that’s a good start. What I know now is you start one show at a time, one night at a time… building your nights instead of trying to do it all at one time.”
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