Making Oprah

Last updated

Making Oprah
Making Oprah cover.png
Presentation
Hosted by Jenn White
Genrebio-podcast
Production
Production
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes3
Publication
Original releaseNovember 10 
November 22, 2016
ProviderWBEZ
Related
Website www.wbez.org/shows/making/71b8de57-b2be-4e03-8481-683258de3ec1/page/2

Making Oprah is an American bio-podcast produced by WBEZ and hosted by journalist Jenn White. The three-part series tells the history and development of Oprah Winfrey's professional career. [1] It premiered on November 10, 2016. The podcast was recommended by Wired , [2] Time , [3] and The New York Times . [4]

Contents

Synopsis

The podcast tells the story of how Oprah Winfrey became one of the best known talk show hosts and moguls in American pop culture. [5] It follows her career from her first broadcasting job as a local TV host for a Baltimore show called People Are Talking, up to present day. [6] [5] [7] The show's topics include reasons behind why audiences connected to Winfrey the way they did, the development of Harpo Studios, and how Winfrey turned to spirituality, all contextualized in terms of the American TV landscape. [6] It discusses some controversial episodes, such as her interview with skinheads, [6] when Tom Cruise jumped on her couch, [6] and the "you get a car" episode. [3]

Host Jenn White interviews several of Winfrey's associates including Phil Donahue. [8] Winfrey appears for an interview in the last episode of the podcast. [5] White shares the significance of the project as a Black woman in media in her forties. [9]

Production

The show was produced by WBEZ anchor and host Jenn White, Colin McNulty, Joel Meyer, Ben Calhoun, and Tricia Bobeda. [9] [10] It was released as a 3-episode series. The podcast debuted on November 10, 2016, with one episode released online each week. [11]

WBEZ succeeded with series with Making Obama (2018) and Making Beyoncé (2019). [12]

Episodes

Episode #Date airedTitle
1November 10, 2016No Strategy, No Plan, No Formula
2November 17, 2016Skinheads And Scented Candles
3November 22, 2016YOU GET A CAR!

Critical reception

The podcast was called "excellent" by Sarah Larson of The New Yorker. [6] The show was recommended by outlets including Wired, Time, The New York Times, USA Today, Marie Claire, and Vulture. [1] [3] [4] [2] [7] [13]

Making Oprah was the most successful podcast by WBEZ after its release. [14]

Related Research Articles

<i>The Oprah Winfrey Show</i> American television talk show

The Oprah Winfrey Show is an American first-run syndicated talk show that was hosted by Oprah Winfrey. The show ran for twenty-five seasons from September 8, 1986, to May 25, 2011, in which it broadcast 4,561 episodes. The show was taped in Chicago and produced by Winfrey. It remains the highest-rated daytime talk show in American television history.

<i>This American Life</i> Short stories radio program and podcast

This American Life (TAL) is a weekly hour-long American radio program produced in collaboration with Chicago Public Media and hosted by Ira Glass. It is broadcast on numerous public radio stations in the United States and internationally, and is also available as a free weekly podcast. Primarily a journalistic non-fiction program, it has also featured essays, memoirs, field recordings, short fiction, and found footage. The first episode aired on November 17, 1995, under the show's original title, Your Radio Playhouse. The series was distributed by Public Radio International until June 2014, when the program became self-distributed with Public Radio Exchange delivering new episodes to public radio stations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Suze Orman</span> American financial advisor (born 1951)

Susan Lynn "Suze" Orman is an American financial advisor, author, and podcast host. In 1987, she founded the Suze Orman Financial Group. Her work as a financial advisor gained notability with The Suze Orman Show, which ran on CNBC from 2002 to 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karen Kilgariff</span> American comedian, writer and podcaster

Karen Kilgariff is an American writer, comedian, singer, author, actress, television producer, and podcast host. She began her career as a stand up comedian in the early 1990s and later became a television actress, most notably as a cast member on Mr. Show. She has written for many comedy television shows, including being the head writer on The Rosie Show, The Ellen Degeneres Show and The Pete Holmes Show.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Faith Salie</span> American writer, journalist, actress and comedian

Faith Coley Salie is an American journalist, writer, actress, comedian, television, radio, and podcast host. She is a contributor to CBS Sunday Morning and a panelist on NPR’s Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!. She hosted Science Goes To The Movies on PBS and CUNY TV. She is a storyteller for The Moth, with her story viewed over 4 million times. Her first book, Approval Junkie, "a collection of daring, funny essays chronicling the author's adventures during her lifelong quest for approval," was published by Crown in April 2016. Salie adapted it into a solo show which she performed Off-Broadway at the Minetta Lane Theater in New York City in 2021. The play premiered at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta in 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mignon Fogarty</span> American writer (born 1967)

Mignon Fogarty is a former faculty member in journalism at the University of Nevada, Reno, and a former science writer who produces an educational podcast about English grammar and usage titled Grammar Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing, which was named one of the best podcasts of 2007 by iTunes. She is also the founder of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcasting network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oprah Winfrey Network</span> American pay television network

The Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) is an American multinational basic cable television network which launched on January 1, 2011, effectively replacing the Discovery Health Channel. OWN is a joint venture between Warner Bros. Discovery and Harpo Studios, conceptualized largely by popular talk show host, Oprah Winfrey—the name of Harpo Studios is Winfrey’s first name, spelled backwards.

<i>S-Town</i> American investigative journalism podcast

S-Town is an American investigative journalism podcast hosted by Brian Reed and created by the producers of Serial and This American Life. All seven chapters were released on March 28, 2017. The podcast was downloaded a record-breaking 10 million times in four days and had been downloaded over 80 million times by May 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ava DuVernay</span> American filmmaker (born 1972)

Ava Marie DuVernay is an American filmmaker, screenwriter, and producer. She is a recipient of two Primetime Emmy Awards, two NAACP Image Award, a BAFTA Film Award, and a BAFTA TV Award, as well as a nominee for an Academy Award and Golden Globe. In 2011, she founded her independent distribution company ARRAY.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oprah Winfrey</span> American talk show host, actress, producer, and author (born 1954)

Oprah Gail Winfrey, known mononymously as Oprah, is an American talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and media proprietor. She is best known for her talk show, The Oprah Winfrey Show, broadcast from Chicago, which ran in national syndication for 25 years, from 1986 to 2011. Dubbed the "Queen of All Media", she was the richest African-American of the 20th century and was once the world's only black billionaire. By 2007, she was often ranked as the most influential woman in the world.

<i>Life Is But a Dream</i> (film) 2013 documentary directed by Beyoncé

Life Is But a Dream is a 2013 autobiographical television film, co-directed and executive produced by American singer Beyoncé Knowles in her directorial debut. The film was released on February 16, 2013 on the HBO network, in conjunction with Parkwood Entertainment, Knowles' management company. The film uses a combination of professional camera footage, private videos from Knowles' laptop and from her May 2012 four-night revue at Revel Atlantic City. Upon its release, the documentary opened to mixed reviews from critics. It was nominated in the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Documentary category for the 45th Annual NAACP Image Awards.

<i>Super Soul Sunday</i> 2011 American TV series or program

Super Soul Sunday is a self-help talk show hosted by Oprah Winfrey, which airs on the Oprah Winfrey Network. The series premiered on October 16, 2011, and ended on December 19, 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indre Viskontas</span> Lithuanian-Canadian neuroscientist and operatic soprano

Indre Viskontas is a Lithuanian-Canadian neuroscientist and operatic soprano. She holds a Ph.D. in cognitive neuroscience from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). While at UCLA she was a member of the Bjork Learning and Forgetting Lab and Cogfog. and a M.M. in opera. She is a Professor of Psychology at the University of San Francisco and serves on the faculty at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. She is also the Creative Director of Pasadena Opera.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Radiotopia</span> Podcast network on Public Radio Exchange

Radiotopia is a podcast network founded by 99% Invisible host Roman Mars and run by the Public Radio Exchange. The network is organized as a collective of some two dozen shows whose producers have complete artistic control over their work. Since its launch, podcasts in the network have been downloaded over 19 million times per month.

<i>Invisibilia</i> Radio program and audio podcast

Invisibilia was a radio program and podcast from National Public Radio, which debuted in early 2015 and "explores the intangible forces that shape human behavior—things like ideas, beliefs, assumptions and emotions." The program's title comes from Latin, meaning "the invisible things." The Guardian ranked Invisibilia among "the 10 best new podcasts of 2015." In its seventh season, the program was hosted by Kia Miakka Natisse and Yowei Shaw; previous season hosts included Lulu Miller, Alix Spiegel and Hanna Rosin.

<i>Another Round</i> (podcast) Comedy and pop culture podcast

Another Round is a culture podcast co-hosted by Tracy Clayton and Heben Nigatu. Debuting on BuzzFeed on March 24, 2015, Another Round featured interviews with guests such as writer and MacArthur Genius Ta-Nehisi Coates and U.S. presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, as well as segments on topics ranging from race, gender to pop culture. BuzzFeed ceased production of the podcast in 2017.

Jennifer White is an American journalist and radio personality. She is the host of the radio program 1A.

<i>Throughline</i> NPR historical podcast and radio program

Throughline is a historical podcast and radio program from American public radio network NPR. The podcast aims to contextualize current events by exploring the historical events that contributed to them. Its episodes have outlined the history of modern political debates, civil rights issues, and domestic and international policy. The show is NPR's first history podcast.

<i>Nerdette</i> Interview podcast

Nerdette is a weekly talk podcast produced and distributed by WBEZ/Chicago Public Media.

<i>Consider This</i> (podcast) American news podcast

Consider This is a daily afternoon news podcast by the American media organization NPR, which typically releases new episodes Sunday through Friday around 5 p.m. ET.

References

  1. 1 2 "Making Oprah: the best podcast of 2016". Marie Claire. December 28, 2016. Archived from the original on February 15, 2020. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  2. 1 2 Locke, Charley (November 21, 2016). "Want a Respite From Listening to Politics? Oprah, Disco, and Audio Fiction Can Help". Wired. ISSN   1059-1028. Archived from the original on June 29, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 "The Best History Podcasts to Listen to Right Now". Time. Archived from the original on September 24, 2021. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  4. 1 2 Bromwich, Jonah Engel (May 26, 2017). "Stuck in Memorial Day Traffic? Here Are 15 Podcasts to Distract You". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331. Archived from the original on June 30, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  5. 1 2 3 Verdier, Hannah (November 17, 2016). "Making Oprah: how one woman changed the face of daytime TV". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077. Archived from the original on February 15, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Larson, Sarah. ""Making Oprah" Illuminates the Oprah Phenomenon, and More". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on May 9, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  7. 1 2 Mallenbaum, Carly. "Podcast pick of the week: 'Making Oprah'". USA TODAY. Archived from the original on February 15, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  8. Desta, Yohana. "Oprah's Staff Was Once Threatened by the K.K.K." Vanity Fair. Archived from the original on August 14, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  9. 1 2 "'There's Something About Her': Podcast Explores How Oprah Became Oprah". NPR.org. Archived from the original on June 28, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  10. "How I Make It: Making Oprah | Werk It: The Podcast". WNYC Studios. Archived from the original on June 29, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  11. "Making Beyoncé". NPR.org. Archived from the original on June 29, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  12. "WAMU And NPR Announce Jenn White As New Host Of 1A". NPR.org. May 7, 2020. Archived from the original on June 27, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  13. Quah, Nicholas (October 3, 2018). "The Best Podcasts of 2018 (So Far)". Vulture. Archived from the original on January 7, 2022. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  14. "The making of binge-worthy serial narratives, from "S-Town" to "Framed"". Nieman Foundation. Archived from the original on June 29, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2020.