Michelle Obama – The making of an Oprah-fied first lady

In a recent op-ed piece the New York Times Editorial board implied that Michele Obama has been made over to be more like Oprah Winfrey in order to be more widely accepted by the White public.

Starting out with “If Barack Obama is elected president, a good chunk of credit should go to Oprah Winfrey”, the board writes in  “The Oprah-fication of Michelle Obama“, that Michelle Obama pretty much read from an Oprah Winfrey script (figuratively speaking) in delivering her speech at the Democratic convention last Monday night.

Michelle had been coming off to some as an “angry black woman” who hated America and since her husband can’t make it into the White house without getting a decent share of the White vote, it was necessary to tone her down a bit and make her less threatening and militant.

The editors of the piece list as the key notes which Michelle Obama took from the Oprah Winfrey win them over script:

• Sentiment Is More Important Than Politics
• Life is About Triumphing Over Adversity
• One must focus on the things for which one is grateful (keep a gratitude journal)

Did not personally hear Michelle Obama’s speech but, whatever the New York Times might be aiming to instigate, Michelle Obama should be credited for her strength and courage. It can by no means be easy to be on the verge of possbily making history by becoming the first Black First Lady of the United States. Having to prove that she’s as worthy of the title as any other first lady must really rub a woman like Michelle Obama the wrong way. She did everything to make herself into a respectable, accomplished American citizen. Her credentials are top notch and yet, her worthiness to be the First Lady of the United States is being questioned. Why?

If you take a look at the other side of the race, you’ll notice that Cindy McCain isn’t faced with the same intense scrutiny as Michelle Obama. It has to be very difficult for her to be in this position so all due credit to Michele Obama for how gracefully she’s handling the situation.

As for the New York Times opinion piece, maybe they meant to compliment her, but it seems somehow belittling to suggest she or her husband would owe a “good chunk of credit” to Oprah Winfrey if they make it into the White House. They seem to be suggesting that Oprah somehow acted as a mediator between Barack and Michelle Obama and the voting White public who follow Oprah Winfrey.