Is Oprah on Her Way Out?

For twenty years now Oprah Winfrey has been the queen of daytime talk shows. In her first eligible year of The Oprah Winfrey Show, the show was awarded three Daytime Emmys including outstanding host and outstanding talk/service program. Within the first year The Oprah Winfrey Show became the number one talk show in national syndication. Since then she has had repeated nominations for Emmys and a loyal following of fans. In more recent months however, it seems the queen of daytime talk is nearing her end on the top.

I have watched many episodes of The Oprah Winfrey Show and many of them are good television. It seems that more so lately though she has lost touch with her audience. What once seemed like a show just talking with the girls has now taken on a new feel, one where Oprah knows best and fans should follow suit. This could be in part due to the fact that we now seem to be over saturated with Oprah. We hear so much about her show, her magazine, her humanitarian efforts, and more recently her prime time show. Maybe we have all just been given too much Oprah to handle.

Another thing working against Oprah is the Ellen Degeneres Show. Ellen has been taking away viewers and awards from her since the debut of the Ellen Degeneres Show. While there are hardcore Oprah fans out there, it seems that many newcomers to daytime talk shows find it easier to relate to Ellen. While Oprah takes on serious issues on a regular basis, (as many talk show hosts do) Ellen seems to be somewhat of a breath of fresh air, combining important issues with laughter. With the way the world is now it seems like we are all looking for a good laugh.

Though Oprah has always been in the running for daytime Emmy awards, lately she has walked away with only nominations. The most recent daytime Emmy Awards are a perfect example. While she was nominated as well as the show itself, The Ellen Degeneres Show, Rachel Ray, and The Tyra Banks Show walked away with the top honors. With her not winning many Emmys in the last few years it makes you wonder if she is being nominated simply because she is Oprah Winfrey.