by Thinus Ferreira
In response to the continuing civil unrest in America after the tragic murder of George Floyd by police, Oprah Winfrey will moderate a brand-new, 2-night TV special OWN Spotlight: Where Do We Go From Here? that will be available to watch for free online and that will also be broadcast in South Africa and across sub-Saharan Africa on Discovery Inc.'s pay-TV channels on MultiChoice's DStv and StarTimes' StarSat.
OWN Spotlight: Where Do We Go From Here? will debut on Tuesday 9 June with Part 1, and Part 2 on Wednesday 10 June. Besides being shown on Oprah's OWN channel in the United States, it will also stream for free on OWN's YouTube channel, Facebook and Instagram.
Discovery Inc. tells TVwithThinus that it also plans to premiere the special on the TLC (DStv 135) channel and then give the 2-parter a second broadcast on the Real Time (DStv 155 / StarSat 162) channel in South Africa and across Africa. Dates and times are not yet known.
Oprah Winfrey will hear from a range of black thought leaders, activists and artists about systematic racism and the current state of America.
In OWN Spotlight: Where Do We Go From Here? she will talk to filmmaker Ava DuVernay, politician Stacey Abrams, Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones, Color of Change founder Rashad Robinson, historian Ibram Kendi, Rev. Dr William J. Barber II, professor and author Jennifer Eberhardt, actor David Oyelowo and journalist Charles M. Blow.
"I've been having private conversations with friends and thought leaders about what's next and where we go from here," says Oprah Winfrey in a statement. "I thought it would be both of interest and service to bring their ideas, concerns and comments into a national spotlight."
David Zaslav, president and CEO of Discovery Inc., says "There is no one like Oprah to bring us all together at this critical moment in our history to offer insights, perspective and action".
"We are honoured to partner with OWN and use our global reach to amplify this important discussion about the global issues of economic and social justice and equality to a potential audience of one billion people across more than 200 markets in a way that only Discovery can."
OWN Spotlight: Where Do We Go From Here? is executive produced by Oprah Winfrey and Tara Montgomery.
