Oprah Winfrey - The Story of an Entrepreneur
Details
Themes: Corporate Social Responsibility
Period : 1957-2000
Organization :Infosys
Pub Date : 2002
Countries :Japan
Industry : Media and Entertainment
Buy Now
Case Code : LDEN006
Case Length : 14 Pages
Price: Rs. 300;
Tools
ICMR regularly updates the list of free cases. To view more free cases, please visit our site at frequent intervals.
|
Since Oprah had been a victim of child abuse, she constantly raised the issue in her show and made constant efforts to protect children from such abuse. In 1991, she demanded that the government pass a new law (The National Child Protection Act) against child abuse. Oprah even testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee of the US to help them establish a database of convicted child abusers in the US. In December 1993, Oprah's efforts were rewarded when the 'Oprah Bill' (The National Child Protection Act) was made a law. On principle, Oprah donated at least 10% of her annual earnings to charity during her adult life. Reportedly, most of these donations were made anonymously. However, in the 1990s, Oprah made such donations openly. She reportedly donated millions of dollars to institutes of higher education (Spelman College, Morehouse College and Tennessee State University) and established scholarships, which helped hundreds of students. In September 1997, Oprah launched 'Oprah's Angel Network' to encourage people to extend their help to those in need. Oprah asked her audience to help the 'less fortunate' by donating their spare change to the Angel Network. By 2000, Angel Network received more than $3.5 million in spare change, which was used to give scholarships to poor students and fund humanity homes. |
|
In April 2000, Angel Network announced the 'Use Your Life Award' for people who 'made others lives better.' The award which, carried a cash prize of $100,000, was given every Monday on 'The Oprah Winfrey Show.' Oprah was chosen to host the interfaith prayer service held at New York City's Yankee Stadium on September 23, 2001, to mourn the victims of the September 11 terrorists' attacks on the WTC. Rudy Giuliani, Mayor of New York City, believed that Oprah was the only national personality who had the ability to host such a profoundly religious service that involved people from different faiths. Oprah lived up to his expectations; her service both comforted and inspired mourners. She said that 'loved ones turned to angels after death and are always near to the people's hearts.' Oprah reminded the people that hope, prayer and love never die and asked them to use every moment of their lives to create a deeper meaning to their lives and to find out what really matters. According to an article published in April 2002, Oprah had become an icon of 'church-free spirituality' and a spiritual guru to her over 22 million devoted viewers. Her influence was such that the Wall Street Journal even credited Oprah with introducing a new technique of interpersonal communication, 'Oprahfication' (i.e. 'public confession as a form of therapy').10 This technique became so popular that a magazine even used Oprah as a verb: "I did not want to tell her, but she Oprah'd it out of me." Reportedly, this technique also became popular with politicians, who began holding 'Oprah-Style' town meetings to understand their constituents.
10] www.christianitytoday.com, April 1, 2002.