What Oprah might tell us about the election

Oprah has been in the news a lot this week. The main story is how her ratings are dropping. Most of the newscasts have focused on how she has become so political by supporting Obama and how her followers do not want to hear her tell them about politics. First off I want to say do not count out Oprah, there is a reason she is the most powerful women in the world, she will bounce back. Her primetime show and her magazine may fail (primetime show already has) but her regular show is not going anywhere. I find it interesting that the news and talk radio is blaming all this on her political stance. Oprah has always been political. She has supported every liberal Democrat that has run for president since Clinton. There is no way that Oprah’s many followers have never known what party she supports or what ideas she supports. She has not stumped before, but her feelings have always been well known. No there is something different that has hurt her ratings. I believe it is something that I have addressed earlier in a blog about Oprah and her new emphasis on spirituality. Most of Oprah’s audience are white middle class Christians. But now Oprah is pushing these new age philosophies about spiritual matters. I can not speak for all her audience, but for my own wife, who is a big Oprah watcher, it is these shows that have turned her off lately. It is great that Oprah is searching for spirituality, but I believe it is this that is setting her back, not Obama.

However, after saying that if it is because of Obama, I believe the Democrats have something to fear. I have said many times lately that I believe some Democrats are worried that they have supported the wrong candidate and if Oprah’s ratings are because of Obama they have. As I said, Oprah has always supported the Democratic party, is it possible that the dislike of Obama is that much greater than the appeal of Oprah? You could argue that much of her middle class white audience are conservative and would not support any Democrat, but in the past her support for Clinton, Gore, and Kerry did not cause her to lose numbers. If women will stop watching Oprah because of Obama, how can he win? Women are a major asset to the Democratic party, maybe even their strongest contingency (the poor, college students, and minorities do not tend to vote in large numbers); they will struggle without them.

As I said, I do not believe Oprah is in real trouble. She is a pro and will figure it out. I think her new push on religion will fade, or the election will end. However Oprah is a touch stone for much of middle America women, and if her support is decreasing because of Obama, the Democrats need to take notice. Change is a good campaign, it has worked many times in the past. But once the initial excitement wares off, voters want to know what kind of change and what kind of man is expounding this change. As we are getting closer to the election, and voters are looking harder at Obama, some may not like what they see.