Saturday, September 06, 2008

Oprah's Big Mistake

Oprah Winfrey, Queen of daytime television, has said that Gov. Sarah Palin would not appear on her show until after the elections are over. She claims it is because she wants to appear nonpartisan, even as she's gushed over her chosen candidate Sen. Barack Obama.

Still, Winfrey has a brand to protect, which makes it plausible that she might reverse course and have Palin on at some time before the election. She's already said that she would love to have Palin on after the election. That may be too late for her show's ratings going forward and her ability to reach audiences. Don't think for a moment that Winfrey doesn't know what this could do to her ratings and her brand image.

This situation is a disaster in the making for Winfrey. Who does she think listens and watches her show? They're going to see what Winfrey is saying, what she is doing, and how she's spinning furiously.

There is a way out of it. She could have a sitdown with both Sen. Joe Biden and Gov. Palin to discuss some issue.

In some ways, Winfrey's problems are the Democrats' problems in microcosm. All of their preconceived notions of who the Republicans are and what they represent have suddenly gone out the window as we see what the Democrats have to offer is just words.

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