''O, The Oprah Magazine'', also known simply as ''O'', is an American monthly magazine founded by talk show host
Oprah Winfrey and
Hearst Communications
Hearst Corporation, Hearst Holdings Inc. and Hearst Communications Inc. comprise an American multinational mass media and business information conglomerate owned by the Hearst family and based in Hearst Tower in Midtown Manhattan in New York ...
. In 2021, Winfrey and Hearst rebranded it as ''Oprah Daily''.
Overview
It was first published on April 19, 2000. , its average paid circulation was over 2.7 million copies, two thirds by
subscription. A South African edition was first published in April 2002; according to the South African Advertising Research Foundation, its average readership was over 300,000. The editor of the South African edition is Samantha Page. While the sales of most magazines published in the U.S. declined in 2009, ''O Magazine'' increased its newsstand sales by 5.8 percent to 662,304 copies during the second half of the year.
''O''
's newsstand sales fell 15.8% during the first half of 2010, while its subscription circulation increased,
[Newsstand Magazine Sales Slide]
The Wrap; Dylan Stableford; August 9, 2010 and sales fell 8.2% in the later half of the year.
Since its inception until the September 2020 edition, Oprah appeared on the cover of every issue of ''O''. The first cover with someone else on it is that of April 2009 issue in which Oprah appears together with the
First Lady Michelle Obama
Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama ( Robinson; born January 17, 1964) is an American attorney and author who served as the first lady of the United States from 2009 to 2017, being married to Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United Stat ...
. The second shared cover is with fellow daytime host
Ellen DeGeneres
Ellen Lee DeGeneres ( ; born January 26, 1958) is an American former comedian, actress, television host, writer, and producer.
She began her career in stand-up comedy in the early 1980s, gaining national attention with a 1986 appearance on '' ...
on the December 2009 issue, in which four separate covers were shot for this special holiday issue. For the first time in 20 years of publication, the September 2020 edition featured entirely someone other than Oprah on the cover. This edition featured the late
Breonna Taylor, a young woman killed by police in
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...
.
The magazine serves 63.6%
white
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 29.8%
African-American, 8.8%
Hispanic
The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
, 1.8%
Asian and 6.6% other women. It is directed towards a median age of 47.9, median home value of $214,281, median
HHI of $68,911, and median IEI of $38,756.
In July 2020, it was announced that ''O Magazine'' will end its regular print publications after the December 2020 issue. The issue featured an article where Oprah thanked readers and also acknowledged it was the "final monthly print edition." of ''O''.
Digital editions
The December 2010 issue was the first released digitally through the magazine's
iPad app.
The app features exclusive videos of Oprah, allows readers to preview and purchase books presented in the magazine's Reading Room and O List sections, and gives users the ability to purchase monthly or yearly subscriptions. Individual issues are also available for download through the app.
''Oprah Daily''
In 2021, Winfrey and Hearst relaunched ''O, The Oprah Magazine'' as ''Oprah Daily''. It came with a new website called OprahDaily.com, a membership community Oprah Insider, and a quarterly print magazine titled ''O Quarterly''.
Staff
In July 2009,
Susan Casey became the editor-in-chief of the magazine. Before joining, she was the development editor of
Time Inc. Casey was editor-in-chief of ''
Sports Illustrated Women'', editor-at-large for Time Inc., and
creative director
A creative director is a person who makes high-level creative decisions; oversees the creation of creative assets such as advertisements, products, events, or logos; and directs and translates the creative people who produce the end results. Creat ...
of ''
Outside''. Casey wrote ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' bestseller ''
The Devil's Teeth: A True Story of Obsession and Survival Among America's Great White Sharks'' (2005), and ''The Wave''.
In September 2009, the magazine hired former ''
Publishers Weekly
''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...
'' editor-in-chief
Sara Nelson as books editor at ''O''.
In May 2013, Lucy Kaylin was promoted to editor-in-chief, replacing Susan Casey.
Books
Inspired by
Oprah's Book Club, ''O'' has always paid regular attention to books since inception. In 2015, the magazine teamed up with
Flatiron Books of St. Martin's Press and itself published a series of inspirational books, including ''O's Little Book of Happiness'' and, in 2016, ''O's Little Book of Love & Friendship''.
Public perception
In a March 2001 article entitled "O Positive", Noreen O'Leary argued that Winfrey was well on her way to influencing the content of
women's magazines beyond her own, just as she has helped reshape daytime TV and the world of book publishing.
Brockmeyer lawsuit
In April 2001, Oprah Winfrey and the Hearst Corporation were sued for trademark infringement by Ronald Brockmeyer, publisher of ''
«O»'', a German
erotic periodical whose publication dated back to the 1990s. In a March 2003 decision, Judge
John Koeltl dismissed the suit, citing the different content of the two magazines in addition to the irregular publication schedule and minimal American sales of the German magazine.
References
External links
* Official magazine websites
Oprah Winfreyan
Hearst including
ABC Circulation information and
mission statement
A mission statement is a short statement of why an organization exists, what its overall goal is, the goal of its operations: what kind of product or service it provides, its primary customers or market, and its geographical region of operation ...
Oprah gives ''O'' magazine staffers $10K each to celebrate 10th anniversary
{{Hearst
Hearst Communications publications
Magazines established in 2000
Magazines published in New York City
Monthly magazines published in the United States
Oprah Winfrey
Women's magazines published in the United States
2000 establishments in New York City