Saving the Oprah Winfrey Network

Oprah Winfrey regrets how she put together OWN, the Oprah Winfrey Network, saying she may not have created OWN if she could do it all over again.

"The idea of creating a network was something that I wanted to do," said Oprah. "Had I known that it was this difficult, I might have done something else."

OWN, based in Los Angeles, has been struggling horribly with ratings, cancelling shows and laying off employees. Why? Because the programming sucks, and unnecessarily so.

Millions of longtime Oprah fans expected a certain standard from OWN, which they have yet to see on her network. OPRAH has long been a brand name representing EXCELLENCE.

Today, Oprah admits making "101 mistakes" with OWN. What are some of the things that have turned OWN viewers off?

Too much gay stuff. LGBT topics can only carry ratings for so long. The majority of people are heterosexual and thus are sick of constantly being hit over the head with what is now perceived as a gay agenda.
Too much freaky, preachy new age spirituality. Back in the day, nearly every Christian white woman was an Oprah addict. Many have since fled.
The movie Philadelphia, a depressing film about a guy with AIDS, airing on OWN three times in a row and tying up programming for six hours. Is that really what women want to watch?
Too many old movies airing from the '70s, '80s and '90s. Can't Oprah the billionaire afford some films from this century on OWN?
Dr. Phil being aired way too much. WAY TOO MUCH. Too much of a good thing makes people gag. There are many other doctors to watch on television and on the Internet these days.
Paula Zahn's show about murder, murder, murder and crime, crime, crime. Seriously? No further comment is necessary.

Hot New Talk Show on OWN

Have a show like "The Talk" or "The View" --- just much cooler. Women want to watch women discussing the hot topics of the day more than ever.

Oprah needs to bite the bullet and play den mother to a group of women dressed in sweats, eating and drinking on a "living room" set, with a kitchen attached!

Real women eat, drink and gab. Make the set funky, comfy and "anything goes." Informality is key. Imagine superstars as guests in sweatpants, munching and dishing the dirt without looking overly glamorous (fake).

Making sweats (of all colors) a requirement will level the fashion playing field, and it lets everyone chill out --- including viewers.

Keep it real for real viewers. Really.

Topics? Just stick to stuff in the news and put a limit on obligatory gay emotionalism and freaky spirituality.

Call the show "The Girls" or something instantly identifiable like that.

TIP: Keep expanding into more homes, as discussed in the following video, but start appealing to the WIDEST possible audience with what people care about TODAY.

Oprah Winfrey Network