Oprah Winfrey says the aim and goal of the brand-new Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) programming block which South African and African viewers can now see on Thursdays and Sundays on the refreshed TLC Entertainment (DStv 172) on MultiChoice's DStv is "to bring something positive" to viewers.
The media mogul and talk show host who jetted in to South Africa spoke at VIP reception and official launch function of TLC Entertainment and OWN in South Africa said "our goal is to constantly evolve".
"What you see at our launch isn't what it will be in a year and isn't what it will be in two or three years because we're constantly evolving and moving and responding to what the viewers tell us they want to see and believe is the heart of the brand of OWN. I really look forward to this next step of this fantastic journey together," said Oprah Winfrey.
"I created this network because I thought that for the 25 years of The Oprah Winfrey Show - and it was a wonderful and one of the most fabulous life experiences anyone can ask for to be part of that platform and that era - but I wanted to be able to have other forms of expressions and to connect to audiences in a different way."
"Specifically what we do every week on Super Soul Sunday is that we talk to the world's thought-leaders on that show about what really matters and why we're here and what it means to be human and our humanity towards each other."
"The brand is about hope and the brand is about opening your heart space, people - men if they want to - but mostly women - although I'm happy to have any men come along who want their heart space opened," said Oprah Winfrey.
"What is amazing is that the very same thing that I tried to say for the 25 years of The Oprah Winfrey Show is the very same thing that we say in O The Oprah Magazine every month, which is the very same thing that we will be saying on OWN."
"Even when I'm talking with celebrities who you may not feel is the world's best spiritual teachers, I'm always looking for the insight which allows the viewer to see themselves; allows them to see that 'Oh, you made that mistake, maybe I was on the wrong path too'. It's all to let people know that we're more alike than different."
"That's really what OWN for me is about - clearing the space so that I can see other people's stories in a way that reflects my own," said Oprah Winfrey.
"I'm thrilled to be a part of South Africa because I feel a connection to the people here. I feel a connection to the land, I feel a connection to the spirit of the country. And I'm really so proud of the journey we've gone through in starting OWN in the United States while I was till doing the last year of The Oprah Show."
"I recognise that I didn't have the proper people. I couldn't be in two places at the same time - not even I can do that - and finding the correct leadership in the people who have been leading The Oprah Show all those years - that and moving those people over to OWN, really began to turn the tide for us and also change the narrative."
"What really changed the narrative was I stopped looking and listening to the press and what the press was saying of 'It's a struggling, it's struggling'. I started to think for myself."
"What an amazing thing it is to be born when I was born and to have worked in this business for as long as I have, and to end up with a TV network with my name on it, and to be able to create every day with my team the kind of programming that speaks to the hearts of people and which really connects to viewers in a way where they feel like they're a part of your family; that they feel like they know you," said Oprah Winfrey.
"When we do our shows, particularly the Super Soul Sundays, the response that I've gotten to that show are rewarding enough to last you a lifetime. Someone wrote to me just last week and said: 'I wish this could be Super Soul Network. But I realise the planet isn't ready, so I will just take the Sundays."
"I'm really so proud of the journey we've had. The thing I always ask my team as we continue this journey is of building more shows and meaningful programming which we know out viewers will respond to, is what is your intention?"
"Our intention behind every interview and every series is to bring something positive to our viewers - a new way of looking at something. Oprah's Master Class is about world famous legends speaking about their own struggles and using their life as a class and information to help us be enlightened about our own," said Oprah Winfrey.
"Our millions of viewers feel passionately about this channel the same way that they feel passionate about O, The Oprah Magazine, and they feel passionately about the shows."
"Those of us who are working behind the scenes, I believe that our programming is really resonating with our viewers because they see that we are encouraging them to do more than just sit in front of a television and watch. We encourage them to be interactive," she said.
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