So, I presume you've watched Oprah. Did you see anything that explains or justifies her position as "probably the most celebrated and powerful black woman in U. S. history"?
On the other hand, did you see anything that would make you classify her show as "trash"?
20 comments:
This is a post for CB. Not really by blog queen. Just sent to me by a frustrated poster:
As I was watching one of Dr. Phil’s episodes, titled Step Monster, I realized how pathetic our television-viewing society has become. Stepmothers, or more passionately called in this episode, Step Monsters, were screaming at each other and exchanging select words. To make matters worse, Dr. Phil was present and was just observing these families break apart. The fighting was because the real mothers believed that the stepmothers were not taking care of their children properly, and secluding them from the family. This resulted in even more outrage, and the show ended with no resolution between the fighting sides. Families express and confront their problems on national television, and America tunes into the drama. We find entertainment in other people’s problems. Personally, I do not think that this is the healthiest way to find entertainment, but I’m not going to lie, I found the episode pretty interesting.
Although Dr. Phil is educated and has a B.A., M.A., and PhD in psychology, most talk show hosts have no education, and attempt to cure their guests with the little knowledge they have. Talk TV shows become especially dangerous when viewers tune in and relate their problems to the guests on the shows. Viewers take the advice from Maury, Jerry Springer and Dr. Phil and try to apply it to their own problems instead of seeking help from a psychologist.
How can Jerry Springer, a law school graduate, or Maury Povich, a journalist, help people with their serious emotional and psychological problems? The answer is, they can’t. But they can bring in massive audiences, tear families apart, and make millions of dollars while doing it—and that’s all the producers care about. As I was looking into Jerry Springer’s shows and why he became so popular in the 90’s, I came across an online article which stated, “At this point, the show was no longer about conflict resolution...it was pure exhibition” (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120974/usercomments). The producers for Jerry Springer would no longer try to resolve the problems of the guest’s rather cause an even bigger fiasco for the viewers. The more screaming, punching and throwing of chairs, the better the ratings were.
I watched an episode of Oprah that was pretty lame. But the information that she had to present was pertenent and useful. She talked about things that most people can easily relate to, such as how long you should keep common household items, such as pillows, prescription drugs, and even food. Although it was not the most interesting topics they were useful and Oprah was able to put it in a "fun" way, which is the main reason i thing that Oprah is the undisputed queen of the talk show curcuit.
After reading the essay "talk show furor" and then watching the mad tv episode of Oprah i was really able to appreciate the show more, it was much more humorus. I watched one late night talk show, i think it was a re-run of David letterman, and i enjoyed it much more because it had much more humor in it and it talked about things that were a bit more mindless that you didnt really have to pay attention too.
Pat Kline...
I watched an episode of Opera on Monday afternoon. This particular episode is not really the best episode to use if you were trying to defend whether Opera is considered “trash TV”. The topic of the show was mostly about the expiration dates on various objects. At first, I thought this was going to be one of the most boring shows I’d ever have to sit through; but as the show went along I realized that even this seemingly stupid topic became surprisingly interesting. Opera had knowledgeable sources that explained the healthy expiration date on different products. Additionally, I feel that most of the general population could relate to the everyday products covered in the show such as shoes, prescription pills, and children’s toys. Opera’s ability to take a topic like this, and make it educational and still at the same time have a side of humor is why I do not consider her show “Trash TV”.
In contrast, I watched an older episode of “The View” and it really helped define the line between a good talk show and a trash talk show. I would absolutely define “The View” as Trash TV and a terrible talk show. There are a variety of reasons why "The View" is a miserable talk show; ranging from aspects as simple as its horrific intro music to the subjects and topics of the show. After watching the show I almost felt insulted that someone would actually put this on TV for me to watch. One thing I found most shocking about the show was the behavior of the women. Additionally, the humor in the show was series of inside jokes that hardly any viewers could relate to.
For example, the episode I watched had Joan Rivers in it. As she entered the stage she carried a fake baby that she was pretending to hold like a real child. As she sat down she began to talk about how hard it is to have a kid at her age, while the other women on the show laughed and interrupted each other as they stated their own opinions. These women who are suppose to be a little older and more professional, sounded worse then a bunch of teenage girls. Furthermore, Joan started making jokes include one where she had the babys mouth in both of her "private areas". By the end of the show it was evident that “The View” brings nothing to the table.
I just watched an episode of Oprah today and it surprised me. There was a lot of emotion in it and to be honest, I felt a lot of emotion while watching it. This episode that I saw was introducing Bill Clinton and his new book "Giving". Though he never really said much throughout, a clip was shown of a girl that was inspired (by one of Oprah's episodes) to donate money to children who needed help in Africa, meanwhile she had just undergone two liver transplants. Then brought on a guest (a famous extennis player) who built a school in a 'low class' sect of Las Vegas...Wow. If you needed an episode to explain why she is the most "celebrated and powerful black woman in U.S. history" this was the one. She looked into a deeper issue than guys cheating on their girls and getting other woman pregnant and issues like that as seen on the Jerry Springer type talk shows.
The only thing I saw that would classify her as trash is the fact that there were about 6 commercial breaks in just the first half hour of her show. :-( that lost points with me. (Just kidding though of course of classifying that as trash). But really, her show is hard to classify as trash with having only seen that one episode.
In the book,"freaks talk back", the author says "Talk shows are not a smart place to look for either therapy or problem solving." However, I think this quote does not belong to the show I watched this morning called "Dr.Phil". I thought the show was very unique and helpful to solve people's problems. The show was solving a newly married couple's problems and complications involving their children. There are some examples to support my idea.
Firstly, Dr.Phil is not just a host, but a professional psycologist. He has lots of knowledge and skills to take care of the guest's issues.
Secondly, the show did not only expose the problems, but also offered accurate views of situations and solutions for the guests. Dr.Phil's conversation was very specific and serious.
Lastly, Dr. Phil did not try to gain the audience's attention with unnecessary entertainment, but instead he drew attention with his great advices based on evidence and details. I found out that the show actually takes care of the guests after the show by offering more therapy and checking on them after a couple of weeks.
Therefore, according to my examples, I think the Dr.Phil show is a great talk show that offers help to solve people's problems.
In my opinion Oprah is the most famous and wealthy black woman in the world, but i am not completely sold on the idea that she should be. It seems like a TV host should not be looked upon as the most influential voice in the black society. Oprah is an incredbile woman and yes her show has made some ground breaking achievements, but i think it gears more twords the crowd that enjoys trashy tv. the episode of oprah i saw was about sexual preditors, and seemed to remind me of a high class version of jerry springer. Oprah's veiwers seem to also be attracted to other trashy tv shows, so the show seems to fill the viod of a trashy tv show.
Although oprah's catches the eye of trash tv veiwers, her show also has a good message, and can apeal to all sorts of veiwers. I personally liked the episode with Dave Chappelle. He had reciently gone through some trouble, and oprah had him on her show to lift him back up. She has a very stong sense of community, an always seemed to be involved in some new charity event. Although i believe oprah's show can still be classified as trash tv, i would never question her personality or intentions.
I agree that this particular episode of Oprah in which she talked with people who have trouble letting go of old household items was not the best episode. I usually enjoy watching Oprah and listening to the guests she brings on the show because in most cases they each have an interesting story, and something to learn from. These features range from the stories of a holocaust survivor to a girl struggling with anorexia. Stories like this are educational and can capture the attention of nearly any viewer. She allows others to share their stories by encouraging them without humiliation and offering advice. It was interesting to see how Oprah made a topic as strange as household items as interesting as she did. It is clear that she will remain one of the most influential women on television
After watching an episode of Oprah I watched “The View“. A talk show in which four women sit around a table and discuss the latest trends and drama in Hollywood can be defined as trash. The show is supposed to give other women a chance to hear from a range of perspectives; however, this only results in dramatic fights between the co hosts. The guests usually include Joan Rivers or Lindsay Lohan who have little to offer to an audience, and do not care to talk about important issues.
I watched one episode of Oprah yesterday afternoon. Honestly, I thought the show was boring and I could not find anything about Oprah as "the most celebrated and powerful black woman in U.S history." However, it does not mean that I considered the show as "trash".
Oprah talked about hygiene through the show. Such as how often people should change their pillow, bad sheets and importance of watching for expiration dates of foods and perscription medicines or housekeeping duties.
It was not a interesting topic, but I could actually earn some informations and facts that I had never noticed before.
Never in my life have I been a big fan of Oprah, I would actually go as far as to say that I dislike her. For the first time ever I watched a full episode of her talk show and as much as I hate admitting this, it really was not that bad. Her show actually gave people insightful information and it certainly kept me entertained throughout the whole hour. Oprah has the ability to educate her viewers and at the same time make it entertaining and humorous. She is down to earth, friendly, and genuinely wants to help others who are less fortunate. Oprah certainly has a great reputation and is known to attract all types of viewers. Now the question is whether or not Oprah is considered trash tv.
I also watched an episode of Jerry Springer and Ellen. Its obvious that Jerry Springer is considered trash tv, but it is harder to classify talkshows such as Ellen and Oprah. There is absolutely nothing to Jerry Springer except for the fights that break out every two minutes and arguing that is hard to understand. Nothing is ever really solved, and personally as a viewer it just leaves me feeling frustrated that people would subject themselves to such humiliation and disappointed with what our world is coming to. Ellen on the other hand does not exactly enlighten her audience with real useful information, but at least she is not filling it with complete crap. She has a great sense of humor, and I found the show to be extremely entertaining. I don't think I could ever consider Ellen as art, but I would certainly not write it off as trash. I find myself feeling the same way about Oprah. At least she is helping others, educating her viewers and setting a good example.
The only problem is that some viewers actually watch Oprah or Jerry Springer with the hopes of getting some advice or answers out of it. These talkshows are not qualified to be giving out real advice to serious questions. As the book Freaks Talk Back By Joshua Gamson quotes that talk shows offer "bad advice and no resolutions for problems." This is all very true when it comes to serious situations or problems.
So overall, I would have to say that Oprah should not be qualified as trash tv. Again, I would not go as far as to classify her show as art though.
I believe that the Oprah show is extremely educational and entertaining at the same time. For me, it is definitely NOT trash. It impacts people in such a way that it can draw the viewer into the show itself which can be seen in the fact that ten million Americans watch her shows. I, like many Americans, believe that Oprah is the most qualified to be president of the US, as mentioned in the “Signs of Life”. Also, Oprah's style of interacting with her audience is more caring and gentle than that of Jerry Springer’s. Oprah actually hugs her guests, weeps when she feels like it, personally says good-bye to each member after a show, and speaks about her personal experiences when the time is right. Oprah also helps under privileged kids by donating to various groups and by building her enormous school in Africa. She actually takes action rather than just sit-back-and-listen attitude that most TV show hosts have towards their guests.
In contrast, the TV show “The View” is completely different. All of the four hosts are a waste of time. The only two things they do are gossip and criticize other people. There is nothing educational in their conversation. Viewers get to find out about their personal life stories while listening to what they have to say about a certain topic. Many of them don’t agree with a particular issue and that is why most of them argue while shooting the show and why Rosie O’Donnell left. Nobody liked Rosie and most of the women had a different opinion. In addition, they also try to imitate Oprah’s style by always giving away something to the audience. Their focus is more towards “women” rather than “individual” issues. They don’t talk about anything educational that might instruct the viewer.
On the other hand, I did watch the Mad TV’s Oprah spoof on YouTube and I thought it did imitate Oprah on some level. Even though, Oprah does help out many people in this world, she can be a little arrogant when she talks about what she has accomplished throughout her lifetime. However, that can also be understandable because no one else has achieved what she has or most people don’t have that much money.
I completely agree with "msapper". I do believe that Oprah is far from trash TV. She focuses on educational issues rather than "trash" that won't educate you in anything. Her shows are extra interesting when Dr.Oz arrives and he explains to the audience why certain things happen to our minds and bodies. Viewers can learn just by listening to what he has to say in her show.
I just watched my first episode of Oprah today. I was amused and I sort of
interested. Why I think she has become a very influential person is who she
markets to. I feel that the Oprah show is aimed at homemakers being that It is
on at 4:00 in the afternoon.
The Oprah episode I saw was with Bill Clinton and Andre Agassi. It was to
promote Clintons book "Giving." This I feel was also a promotion for his wife and her quest for the presidencie. I was impressed what people have done that Bill Clinton book promotes.
Because of who Oprah promotes to she is not considered trash. Oprah on her
show has more commercial breaks then the super bowl. If she is so dedicated to
getting the story out there she would not be cutting someone off in the middle
of their sentence to make a dollar.
I also agree with what michael o'keeffe says. Even though, her shows can be extremely personal, the information she presents is extremely useful to anybody, not just women or men, but both. That is probably one major reason of why she has the success that she has now.
BTW, this is Maria Altamirano...
Dr. Phil's show is trash. He is trying to save the world one family at a time. Is putting a families problems on national t.v. really solving them?????? I used to watch Dr. Phil's programe after school. I am not sure who his target veiwers are. I am sure he would not consider his show trash but a some sort of art. I hope that watching his show people are not trying to take his advice for their own problems but using the examples on the show to find their own personal help.
This is a reply to most of the posts in general. As I was reading through, most people had either not seen a whole episode before or just ever really cared...but then after watching an episode, the common response seemed to be "it was actually not that bad" which i think goes to show that her show is a different standard of 'talk show' and gives her more credit.
I have now watched one episode of oprah and i would have to say that my original thouhgt that the show is trash was changed. she actually has something constructive to say about whats going on. i mean its actually part of that very selective few tv shows that you dont walk away from thinking to yourself, "wow not only did i wast 30 min. of my life but hey my IO just droped by five points".
maybe oprah was glorified by the fact that the other talkshow i watched was Connin . as you may or my not know its the kind of show that should have the caption 'check your brain at the door' under the shows title. this show is clearly trash, however it is possibly a nessisary trash. by this i mean it is sometimes good for us to just turn on the tv and turn of out brain, you know just unwinde for a while and forget about reality.
After watching Oprah and reading the chapter about her show in Signs of Life a few things came to mind as to why she is considered to be so great. First of all, the standards and morals Oprah seem to be high enough that people are willing to let her into their homes through their televisions. Oprah demonstrates good taste and also seems to have respect for all of her guests unlike many talk show hosts.
I would consider some episodes of Oprah trash when she uses her popularity to endorse products although she may not really like the product. Due to her fame, people will often times buy a product just because Oprah had it on her show. An example of this was when she gave away Pontiac G6’s to everyone in her audience as a promotion for Pontiac when the car came out. I doubt that Oprah would actually drive one of these cars. I noticed it worked well because at the car dealership I worked at lots of people came in asking about he car Oprah gave away. When Oprah uses her show to promote products for companies I don’t consider this good television but trash.
As michael o’keefe and catherine toscano mention in their posts Oprah sometimes can give valuable information which is one thing that separates it from other talk shows. Other talk shows often times are made just to entertain and do not give valuable information.
Well. While I think that we haven't defined art, I think we have started to define trash. And I would say that we are almost unanimous in our belief that Oprah (the show, not the woman) is not trash.
1. She had Bill Clinton on (I think high profile guests of a "serious" nature start to change the show's category don't you? Although I really wonder about the politicians who show up on The Colbert Report. . . )
2. She used airtime during the Clinton episode to attempt to highlight people who are doing good in the world, to add to the good (thus you got the 1/2 million dollar pledge from the anonymous donor), and to create change.
3. Even those of you who saw less impressive episodes (the household items show, for example) found them instructive, somewhat educational, and not offensive. (And while great art is sometimes offensive, it is also one of the things that we seem to use to define trash tv: offensive without any higher purpose.)
So I think it's fair to say, as a group, that we do not consider Oprah trash tv. Yes?
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