Oprah has a legion of followers who came to her defense following Howard Stern’s recent remarks about her wealth.
The longtime radio host likely added to his list of detractors after calling Winfrey to task for her social media posts that show off her luxurious and comfy lifestyle. “Oprah’s not embarrassed by her wealth at all,” said Stern during the Nov. 28 episode of his SiriusXM radio program, “The Howard Stern Show.”
When his co-host, Robin Quivers, suggested that Winfrey is merely giving her followers a glimpse into her life, Stern said the TV host should still be aware of the stark contrast her life may have compared to that of most of her 21.7 million followers.
“Well, you gotta be a little self-aware and know that there are people struggling out there, Robin. You got to,” Stern said. “You gotta kind of think about people who don’t have — to eat. You know what I’m saying? I mean, come on. You gotta be a little bit aware of this s—t.”
The controversial media figure continued, “I make a good living, and I’m having trouble watching Oprah. I go, wow. Look what’s going on over there? Her estate is unbelievable. When she goes shopping, she goes shopping in her backyard, cause everything is growing back there. There’s a farm back there.”
While he did commend Winfrey for her philanthropic acts, it was too little, too late for Winfrey’s fans. “So….is Howard Stern mad at all wealthy people or just Oprah? He talkin about Oprah flaunting her wealth bc she has people cooking for her when folks are out here struggling. Bezos built a spaceship and went to space off the backs of his employees. Is Stern mad at him?” tweeted one person.
A second wrote, “Howard Stern’s desire to police Oprah’s decision about what to do with her money is just one more instance of how it’s been completely normalized in media to take liberties with powerful, visible Black women’s reputations in ways that don’t happen to their male peers.”
And another commented, “Howard Stern picked on Oprah because she’s a black woman who has more money than him. There are many other rich dudes he could’ve singled out. Oprah showing her wealth makes him feel some type of way.”
According to Forbes, the media mogul has an estimated net worth of $2.5 billion. Her empire was built on the success of her long running talk show, the Oprah Winfrey Network, her multimillion-dollar real estate portfolio, her stake in Weight Watchers, and her multi-year deal with Apple TV+.
Last month, the business magazine caused an uproar on social media when it listed Winfrey, Kanye West, and Jay-Z as too poor to make the cut on “The 2022 Forbes 400 List of Richest Americans.”
In her 1989 interview for the Academy of Achievement, Winfrey said her successful career was not made by chasing money. “What I know is, is that if you do work that you love and work that fulfills you, the rest will come. … The fact that the money has come has really surprised me. I’ve been just really surprised and delighted and very pleased, and at many times overwhelmed by it. But the money has never been the focus.”
In the new series, “The Hair Tales,” Winfrey said she still wakes up in disbelief that she lives in a luxury 70-acre estate in Montecito, California, and is blessed to live the life she does. It goes without saying that Stern is equally shocked.
