Oprah Winfrey (aphrodite-in-nyc/Flickr)
Oprah Winfrey will mark her journalistic return to television this fall as a special contributor on “60 Minutes.” It will be her first foray back into the news game since she co-anchored Baltimore’s WJZ-TV in 1977.
The CBS program’s executive producer, Jeff Fager, announced the news Tuesday, Jan. 31, and in a statement, Winfrey shared how eager she is to join the Sunday night show.
“I’m so excited and proud to join forces with this historic news program, which for me represents the bastion of journalistic storytelling,” Winfrey said. “At a time when people are so divided, my intention is to bring relevant insight and perspective, to look at what separates us and help facilitate real conversations between people from different backgrounds.”
Fager praised Winfrey’s storied background in television and media, saying he’s “thrilled” for her to lend her “unique and powerful voice” to “60 Minutes.”
“She has achieved excellence in everything she has touched,” he said. “Her body of work is extraordinary, including thousands of interviews with people from all walks of life. She is a remarkable and talented woman with a level of integrity that sets her apart and makes her a perfect fit for ’60 Minutes.’ ”
Winfrey previously appeared on CBS in December, when she conducted a farewell interview with former First Lady Michelle Obama. Before then, the TV personality had a 25-year career as host of “The Oprah Winfrey Show” and opened her production company, Harpo Studios, during that period. When the talk show came to an end, Winfrey established a new television network called OWN, which has achieved success in recent years due to two Tyler Perry-produced series — “The Haves and Have Nots” and “Love Thy Neighbor” — and Ava DuVernay’s “Queen Sugar.”
The media mogul also has delved into acting. Since her Oscar-nominated performance in the 1985 film adaptation of “The Color Purple,” Winfrey has appeared in “The Butler” and “Selma.” She will star in the upcoming HBO film, “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” as well as Disney’s big-screen adaptation of “A Wrinkle in Time.”
