Oprah Winfrey Research Paper

Oprah Winfrey gave away 150 $25,000 scholarships and was able to get 15,000 volunteers to build homes for Habitat for Humanity. Analyzing Oprah Winfrey’s philanthropy will help you to understand how she became loved by millions of people all over the globe. Oprah Winfrey has been donating money to help people for many years. A large portion of Winfrey’s giving has gone to educational causes, including charter schools, programs that support African-American students, and the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy in South Africa. Winfrey has donated large amounts of money to others through her Angel Network, helped children with education, and improved the environment. Analyzing Winfrey's philanthropy will help others to understand the reason she

has the desire to promote the welfare of others.

To begin, Winfrey has donated large amounts of money to others through her Angel Network. Established in 1998, Oprah's Angel Network started with her asking her viewers to donate their change and time. From there, she raised $3.5 million and gave the money away in the form of 150 $25,000 scholarships and she was able to get 15,000 volunteers to build homes for Habitat for Humanity. It raised over $80 million and all of that money was donated to multiple charities. She has helped build 60 schools in 13 countries and she has also provided uniforms and textbooks for them. You should give to this organization, because, according to Forbes, “Winfrey had given away approximately $400 million to educational causes by 2012, including nearly 400 scholarships to Morehouse College, and more than $40 million in operating support for the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy in South Africa.” (Forbes).
In addition, Winfrey has helped children with education. She has given at least $10 million to A Better Chance. The mission of A Better Chance is to improve access to quality education for students of color, and they have given $1 million or more to at least nine different charter school organizations in a number of different areas throughout the country. Mentoring programs have also received support. Winfrey has also provided scholarships for Boys and Girls Clubs of America and she has given access to education to those who might not otherwise have it. Her donations have gone far beyond America, travelling around the world. She created The Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy School for Girls and has donated to other educational initiatives for children.

Furthermore, Winfrey has improved the environment. According to David Callahan, “in 2006, Oprah gave $1 million to the Green Belt Movement International for tree planting and community development initiatives in Africa” (Callahan). Winfrey has also helped the environment through projects. According to Steve and Myrlia Purcell, “Winfrey has said that 100% of any donation you give goes directly towards funding a project” (Purcell). An example of one of those projects is called Rebuilding the Gulf Coast. Other organizations include the Clinton Foundation, which supports many causes, some of which include treating HIV and AIDS and fighting climate change, and Free The Children, which is an organization dedicated to building schools for children in developing countries.
To continue, according to Frazier, “when it comes to celebrities and philanthropy, few give more than Oprah Winfrey” (Frazier).

Winfrey donates millions of dollars of her own money to fund her interests and charities and a significant portion of her giving moves through three of her main charities. Those charities include The Angel Network, The Oprah Winfrey Foundation, and The Oprah Winfrey Operating Foundation. The Angel Network focuses on collecting millions of dollars in donations and then turning around and providing grants to organizations that focus on giving access to education, developing leaders who will lead their communities, protecting basic human rights, and creating communities of support. They also provide grants to overseas

organizations.

To advance, The Oprah Winfrey Foundation focuses on providing grants for not-for-profit organizations and she uses her personal money to fund the grants. They help projects of special interest to Winfrey, including education, learning, and leadership development. This organization doesn't accept donations or grants. Instead, Winfrey chooses charities and makes special endowments through her private foundation, giving millions of dollars in grants to non-profit organizations. The foundation has more than $190 million in assets and funds.
To progress, The Oprah Winfrey Operating Foundation focuses on giving money exclusively towards operating the Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa. Through this website, people can donate to this foundation and it is set up to give money into special projects or to make building repairs and improvements.
In contrast, some people claim that Oprah only keeps the money to herself and doesn’t actually donate any of it. To counter this claim, according to Connley, “I was taught that philanthropy caters to no particular group of people. For every talk show episode that Oprah moderated where people complained about her not focusing on a “black issue,” she was donating millions of dollars to one of the top HBCU’s in the country, Morehouse College. When she wasn’t donating to Morehouse College, she was devoting her money and energy to hosting a fundraiser for the private historically black women’s institution, Bennett College, whose donations, along with others, helped to keep the institution in good financial standing” (Connley).

To proceed, some people claim that if they donate to Winfrey, this will only cause Winfrey to become wealthier, and not help others who are in need. To counter this argument, according to GMT, “She gave away around $4.45 million to her organization supporting literacy, children's programs and other humanitarian efforts. The media mogul is estimated to have donated more than $41 million through her initiative” (GMT). Also, some people claim that they need their money to support themselves, therefore they are unable to donate any amount of money to charity. To counter this claim, just giving a little amount of money can make a big difference, and it will come back around to you in the end. Also, according to Winfrey, “you can donate to Goodwill old items that you may not use anymore, the National Furniture Bank Association old furniture that you already own, and the Donation Center old models” (Winfrey).
Moreover, Winfrey is using her platform and fortune to serve the communities of Black America. She is an inspiration to us all, to continue to better ourselves and our community, as she overcame poverty during the height of segregation and racism and became one of the top people in the media, hosted a number one talk show, and became the first African American billionaire female. The importance of donating to charity is that it can save lives all over the globe. Winfrey encourages others to donate as it will help our whole community and make the world a happier, healthier, better place.

In addition, according to Reynolds, “The Oprah Winfrey Show is broadcast nationally and in 1987, which was its first year of eligibility, the show received three Daytime Emmy Awards in the categories of Outstanding Host, Outstanding Talk/Service Program and Outstanding Direction” (Reynolds). Winfrey has earned many awards for her hard work and efforts. In 1988, The Oprah Winfrey Show received its second consecutive Emmy as Outstanding Talk/Service Program, and Oprah herself received the International Radio and Television Society’s “Broadcaster of the Year” award. She was the youngest person to ever receive the honor. Winfrey’s performance in Steven Spielberg’s 1985 adaptation of Alice Walker’s novel The Color Purple earned her nominations for an Oscar and a Golden Globe Award as Best Supporting Actress.

What is more, according to The Muse, “OWN strives to provide its viewers with opportunities for growth and self-discovery.

Reaching beyond the television screen, OWN supplements its programming with a variety of book recommendations, e-classes, and guru-lead creativity and wellness retreats to challenge its viewers to take active steps in becoming the best they can be” (The Muse). Named after talk-show presenter Oprah Winfrey, the Oprah Winfrey Network is a general entertainment television channel that appeared in 2011, hosting a variety of original programming. With shows ranging from ‘Oprah’s Life Class’ to ‘The Haves and the Have Nots’ to ‘Our America with Lisa Ling’, OWN strives to provide a mix of programs meant to educate, entertain, and inspire its viewers” (The

Muse).

In conclusion, Winfrey has donated large amounts of money to others through her Angel Network, helped children with education, and improved the environment. Winfrey uses money to contribute to many organizations that need it. She has spoken numerous times about how important it is to donate to charity. Make a donation to this wonderful foundation and help save millions of lives all over the globe. She also made a will that states that she will donate 1 billion dollars to charity. Donating even just a small amount of money can make a huge difference in the lives of others who need help the most. It only takes a few minutes to visit the website Winfrey has created to give whatever amount of money you choose to give. Go to Winfrey’s website on her donation page at www.oprah.com to make a donation today! Oprah Winfrey is one of the greatest philanthropists in the 21st century.