How Did She Conquer the
Americans African-American talk show queen
Oprah Winfrey is the world’s most powerful celebrity, according to Forbes
magazine. 1 Winfrey,
51, draws 30 million viewers weekly in the United States. Her talk show reaches
112 countries. She earned US $225 million over the past 12 months to rank second
in celebrity riches. The annual Forbes list gives most weight
to annual earnings. 2
"After 21 years, her exciting chat show still rules the airwaves. It created new
celebrities and hundreds of millions of dollars in profits," the magazine said.
Winfrey is most popular with her popular talk show "The Oprah Winfrey Show". She
can always attract the superstars and let them open up to her intimate
interviewing style. Last month, American actor Tom Cruise, 42,
surprised fans when he celebrated his new romance with 26-year-old actress Katie
Holmes. He jumped up and down, shouting "I’m in love." Only a few years ago,
Cruise and his ex-wife Nicole Kidman appeared separately on the same show
telling the news of their divorce 3 Winfrey’s approach appears to be simple. She is in pursuit of
self-improvement and self-empowerment (自强). This has proved to be just what
people, especially women, want. Winfrey often talks about her
personal secrets on her show. That pulls in viewers. For example, she revealed
that she had been sexually abused as a child, and has spoken freely of her
struggle with her weight. Winfrey was born to a poor family in Mississippi in
1954 4 At the age of 19, she became the
youngest person and the first African-American woman to anchor (主持) a news
program. Her success has not just been on the screen. Her media
group includes a women’s TV network and websites for women. Winfrey’s work has
extended to social change. 5 She
testified before the US Senate to establish a national database of dangerous
child abusers. President Bill Clinton later signed "Oprah Bill" into
law. A. But it also looks at the celebrity’s presence on the
Internet and in the media. B. In 1991, she did a lot of work
for the National Child Protection Act. C. She was not a very
successful woman. D. She began broadcasting while still at high
school. E. It placed Winfrey at the top of its annual ranking
of the 100 people last week. F. The couple had been
tight-lipped about their break-up.