Oprah: Knowing Wright from Wrong

It seems that the controversy swirling around Barack Obama's former pastor Reverend Jeremiah Wright just won't end.

In the May 12th issue of 'Newsweek' magazine, the focus has turned from the Democratic presidential candidate to talk show Queen Oprah Winfrey. It would appear that while Winfrey has parlayed her gift of gab into a lucrative empire, she didn't appreciate the inflammatory tone of Rev. Wright's speech while she attended his church.

Winfrey, a transplant to Chicago like Obama, was most likely drawn to the sense of community at the Trinity United Church of Christ when she began attending in 1984. It was the house of worship's assistance to the poor and its down home southern values that probably gave her a sense of connectedness to her new city .

But it only took Winfrey two years to pull up stakes, only attending services there infrequently until the mid 1990's.

So what cooled her warm and fuzzy feeling? According to the article, written by Allison Samuel, it was Wright and organized religion that made Winfrey weary.

And while Wright has gone on media blitz blasting his former high profile parishioner, Barack Obama, he remains oddly numb on Winfrey. She turned her back on the church too. She seems to have disagreed with his message, so why the silence when it comes to her?

Perhaps Wright realizes that he captures more of the spotlight by hurting the presidential aspirations of the only African American to come eerily close to the White House. Maybe, he suffers from the "crab in the barrel" syndrome, where it is easy for him to think nothing of trying to hold a black man down if it means getting his own day in the sun. Or, maybe he is enthralled by having his largest audience ever. Finally, it could simply be that Wright is glad that he gets to share his thoughts with the white media over issues that have haunted him for decades.

Whatever the reasons, it is clear that Winfrey determined that she was getting the wrong message from Wright and the church during her years there. She was smart enough to cut her ties before they could become the ties that bound her career. Unfortunately, it took Obama too long to see the difference. One can only hope he can shake the Wright shadow and take the right message with him to the White House.

Our Lens Sept. 1

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Omar Torres, AFP/ Getty Images

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Host Vanessa Williams performs with dancer Gilles Marini onstage at the 36th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards at The Orpheum Theatre on August 30, in Los Angeles, California.

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Tom Wainaina recounts the events that lead to his being burned over most of his upper body August 26 in the Kibera slum in Nairobi, Kenya. Wainaina was burned by a group of men during post-election violence in Kenya's disputed 2007 presidential election. Ethnic-tribal violence left over 1,000 people dead. The non-governmental organization (NGO) Concern, in cooperation with local Kenyan groups, has launched a campaign to provide the urban poor with cash grants to start a business or get back on their feet after suffering disproportionately from post-election violence in 2007. The money is transferred to the recipients via a mobile phone which insures a safe and simple financial transaction to customers who don?t have bank accounts. Wainaina is one of dozens of Kibera residents to receive the assistance of a cash grant. Hairdressers, grocery stores and food vendors are just some of the businesses that have been financed through the program.

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People standing near the grave of Senator Robert F. Kennedy (D-NY) look at the grave of Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA) at Arlington National Cemetery August 30, in Arlington, Virginia. Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA) was buried yesterday next to his brothers President John F. Kennedy and Senator Robert F. Kennedy (D-NY) after he died of brain cancer on August 25.

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US President Barack Obama takes out his daughters Malia (R) and Sasha (2nd L) and niece Suhaila Ng (L) to shop in the Alleys general store on Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, on August 30, 2009.

Jewel Samad, AFP/ Getty Images

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