On Monday Oprah Winfrey gave each member of her studio audience not a Pontiac, not an iPod, not even a lousy copy of O Magazine stashed under their seats. Nope. The lucky audience members were each given $1,000. Holy crap! A thousand dollars, Oprah? Thanks. As you might imagine, the audience went nuts until Oprah dropped the bombshell. That $1,000 would go to someone other than themselves. That's the kind of gift that makes rich people feel good about themselves, and the rest of us feel sorta horrible. Sure, we want to give money to charity to. We'd like the good feeling that comes with tithing and personal philanthropy. We'd also like the good feeling that comes with paying the phone bill on time.
See, it's not the gift of charity that's such a bummer. It's the way she taunted the audience. First, give everyone a $1,000. Then, tell them they have to give it away. She didn't give anyone the joy of philanthropy. She gave them guilt. The reported wave of disappointment that washed over the audience after the "charity" announcement is the kind of thing that inevitably leads to a late night bout of angst over what a greedy, horrible person you must be for not wanting to part ways with your shiny, new $1,000 so soon.
Fortunately, everyone got a Sony DVD Handycam to "document their good deeds." Did I say to "document their good deeds?" I meant to take the bittersweet sting out of Oprah's "favorite gift."
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
11-08-2006 @ 2:48PM
Michael not mike said...
i agree i would feel goof if i mad the decision not if oprah made the decision thank god they got the cameras though to through at a talk show host whose only reason why she is so loved is because she is a black women
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11-01-2006 @ 6:58PM
CG said...
read the whole article:
"To document your good deeds, because I want to make sure you document your good deeds," Oprah said, working hard to keep up their spirits, "we are lending everybody in this audience our favorite Sony DVD Handycam.
Lending. They don't even get to keep those.
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11-01-2006 @ 7:03PM
Josh said...
Wow, that audience got screwed. They're given $1000, get it taken away, and then don't even get to keep the video camera! I know I would be pretty annoyed to be in that audience. I'd need that money for myself.
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11-01-2006 @ 7:10PM
sanna said...
So if you and had a friend that also was in the audience you could give the money to each other...but I suppose that's probably not gonna make Oprah happy.
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11-01-2006 @ 7:14PM
Captain Obvious said...
Person sitting in seat 13F (turns to person in 13G): "Here, mom, have $1,000!"
Person sitting in seat 13 G (turns to person in 13F): "Here, daughter, have $1,000!"
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11-02-2006 @ 9:09PM
Dwacon said...
At least they didn't have the IRS waiting for them at the exit, ready to extract their share of the $1,000 -- which is what happens to those who win game shows.
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11-01-2006 @ 9:22PM
SJ said...
WTF? How does that make someone feel good? It's not even our own money we are giving to charity. We KNOW it's Oprah giving the money not us.
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11-02-2006 @ 12:01AM
Porchland said...
I thought maybe from the headline is was a venereal disease.
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11-02-2006 @ 6:37AM
Mike said...
Great. Go to a TV show for an hour, and get assigned homework.
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11-02-2006 @ 6:42AM
Mike said...
Also, that "free hugs" deal is just in time for flu season.
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11-02-2006 @ 12:48PM
Gordy said...
We really give Oprah too many props. She's not giving anyone $1,000...Bank of America is. Just Like GM, Apple, Kodak, Dell, etc., have in the past.
Just think, if these companies give the audience crazy money/prizes, just imagine how much Oprah got. She's not at the top of her game by spending her own money, TRUST.
I'm not hating on Oprah [do you boo], but media outlets get her twisted into some frantic philanthropist, when she's simply a media outlet for corporations--just like the others, just more popular.
It's been that way since Optifast.
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11-02-2006 @ 7:14PM
Spazzed said...
Maybe she should take over for Bob Barker
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11-03-2006 @ 9:07AM
imdennycrane said...
LOL Porchland! I thought the same thing - how did she give herpes to all her audience members? And when will we see THAT part of the show?!
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