This letter is associated with the following article:
Letters
Friday, January 27, 2006 12:00 AM

Oprah's revenge

The daytime queen didn't just expose the lies in James Frey's "memoir." She publicly shamed him -- and it was a little creepy.
By Hillary Frey

Read other letters about this article

  • Friday, January 27, 2006 07:12 AM

    Oprah's Revenge

    I saw portions of this show late last night (it's been running repeatedly because comeuppance is such a popular spectator sport). I too found it a little creepy, and as much of a weasel as Frey may be, I felt more than a little sorry for him comming under the stern glare of the Queen of TV Literacy. So Oprah got Pnk'd when her latest cause celebre turned out to be white-trash fiction! Happens to every crusading TV star eventually. Should we be all that surprised that a book publisher sold an outrageous piece of semi-fiction as a courageous "memoir" so we could all vicariously experience his heroic struggle? I call that intellectual slumming. Good reading at the spa though....

    I always thought that the populat genre of published memoirs to be about as "truthful" as reality TV - as soon as the camera comes out, the editing starts. In the end who really expects "truth" from THAT?!

    —tjwombat Read tjwombat's other letters

    Flag
Read other letters about this article

Most Active Letters Threads

740

The commendably missing element from Obama's speech

There was no pretense that human rights is our goal, or the likely outcome, in escalating the war
Glenn Greenwald Read article
688

Obama's exceedingly familiar justifications for escalation

The "new" approach to Afghanistan touted by White House officials seems quite old
Glenn Greenwald Read article
364

America's regression

It's almost impossible to find a nation with as many torture advocates as the U.S. has.
Glenn Greenwald Read article
329

Yes, it's Obama's war now

An uninspiring speech sells a dubious policy, but progressives who feel betrayed have only themselves to blame
Joan Walsh Read article
284

Do Obama officials know what his Afghanistan plan is?

What explains the completely contradictory statements from key aides on a central plank of the war strategy?
Glenn Greenwald Read article

View all »

Letters Help

Currently in Salon