Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Apple Launches 'Oprah's Book Club' Podcast

MacRumors

MacRumors

macrumors bot
Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
66,062
34,905


Apple has today launched an official "Oprah's Book Club" podcast, to accompany the Apple TV+ series of the same name (via The Hollywood Reporter).

Apple's ongoing partnership with Oprah Winfrey has now expanded into podcasting. Over a series of eight episodes, Oprah will discuss Isabel Wilkerson's book "Caste: The Origins of our Discontents."

The non-fiction book, published at the start of August, illustrates "the hidden hierarchy of human ranking that has shaped America." It was lauded soon after on The New York Times bestsellers list. Winfrey said the book "provides a new way of seeing racial inequality, giving rise to countless aha moments and helping us truly understand America as it is now and how we hope it will be."

The podcast will revolve around discussions with a group of guests as they explore the "eight pillars of caste" laid out in the book. Two episodes will be released each week on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The trailer and first episode of the podcast series is available now.

Oprah's Book Club now spans Apple TV+, the Books app, podcasts, curated articles on Apple News, and an interview with Wilkerson streaming on Apple Music. Winfrey will also discuss the book with Wilkerson on the Oprah's Book Club Apple TV+ show this fall.

Earlier this year, it was reported that Apple was planning to develop a range of original podcasts, some of which would focus on Apple TV+ titles, in an effort to compete with the likes of Spotify and Amazon.

In May, Apple introduced The Zane Lowe Interview Series, which featured in-depth conversations from the DJ’s Apple Music show, and daily news roundup "Apple News Today." Apple TV+ anthology series "Little America" is also due to receive an accompanying podcast at some point in the future.

Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Article Link: Apple Launches 'Oprah's Book Club' Podcast
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2020/09/08/apple-launches-oprahs-book-club-podcast/
Last edited:
I don’t know who is behind Apple’s programming ideas. Are you sure this is what your audience is expecting?

Until Apple delivers some appealing content their services will not be competing. The only service I use is iCloud and that is just because I am in the ecosystem.
 
  • Like
Reactions: hooptyuber, javade, lpc2 and 10 others
I was initially excited about this on TV+ but as the selection of books progressed I got more turned off and more insulted. This is not marketed to someone with my worldviews unfortunately. Hard pass on the podcast unless she diversifies her subjects beyond areas she has pet interests in.
 
  • Like
Reactions: javade, mcdawg, Menneisyys2 and 5 others
Oprah jumped the shark years ago anyway, but.

The sort of Kafka-esque implicit bias pseudoscience put forward by the likes of Oprah, who is possibly the first "social influencer" long before the term came to be is at best poisonous to corporate entities who's goal is to make a profit, maintain market share, and promote brand. At worst, it's destructive.

A least half of your customer base thinks this is total hogwash. another 1/4 are on the fence, but are afraid to say it because they don't want to draw the ire of the woke crowd, and just want to make their way in a world fraught with challenges and pitfalls.

The other 1/4 are made up partly of true believers, people on the fence, and those who go along with the zeitgeist of the time in their own obtuse circle of agreers.

The people that really don't like it REALLY don't like it. I mean they really gristle at it.

The same thing is happening with major league sports right now, but I think it's really going to hit home when football starts.

People know the world sucks. They've lived through 2020 and all it's had to offer. They know things aren't perfect. They don't want to PAY to be reminded of the fact. The NFL in particular has gone all in, and from what I can see and hear from my rather passionate football friends, they simply won't watch the games this year. Partly because it's become too preachy. Partly because they've discovered during the pandemic that there are other more fulfilling things to spend their spare time doing.

The shutdown of sports, cinema, theater, and travel forced a lot of people out of their comfort zone in so much as finding a diversion from every day life and a lot of them were all ready to move on. Others are tired of being preached to. Tired of looting, of being told they're racist because they were born with a certain skin color. Tired of being told "silence is violence".

So hey, I like Apple products. The whole Oprach thing is static to me. I like my iPhone and iPad and all that. I'm listening to Apple music as I type this. So I really don't care. I wasn't ever a really big sports fan either, so meh.

But if you're looking for a way to lose money and peeve a lot of your customer base, this is probably the anabolic steroids route to doing that.....
 
  • Like
  • Love
Reactions: hooptyuber, javade, lpc2 and 24 others
She's obsolete. Yet Apple keeps wheeling her out

0O43Hls.jpg
 
  • Like
  • Haha
Reactions: hooptyuber, javade, lpc2 and 19 others
IIGS User said:
Oprah jumped the shark years ago anyway, but.

The sort of Kafka-esque implicit bias pseudoscience put forward by the likes of Oprah, who is possibly the first "social influencer" long before the term came to be is at best poisonous to corporate entities who's goal is to make a profit, maintain market share, and promote brand. At worst, it's destructive.

A least half of your customer base thinks this is total hogwash. another 1/4 are on the fence, but are afraid to say it because they don't want to draw the ire of the woke crowd, and just want to make their way in a world fraught with challenges and pitfalls.

The other 1/4 are made up partly of true believers, people on the fence, and those who go along with the zeitgeist of the time in their own obtuse circle of agreers.

The people that really don't like it REALLY don't like it. I mean they really gristle at it.

The same thing is happening with major league sports right now, but I think it's really going to hit home when football starts.

People know the world sucks. They've lived through 2020 and all it's had to offer. They know things aren't perfect. They don't want to PAY to be reminded of the fact. The NFL in particular has gone all in, and from what I can see and hear from my rather passionate football friends, they simply won't watch the games this year. Partly because it's become too preachy. Partly because they've discovered during the pandemic that there are other more fulfilling things to spend their spare time doing.

The shutdown of sports, cinema, theater, and travel forced a lot of people out of their comfort zone in so much as finding a diversion from every day life and a lot of them were all ready to move on. Others are tired of being preached to. Tired of looting, of being told they're racist because they were born with a certain skin color. Tired of being told "silence is violence".

So hey, I like Apple products. The whole Oprach thing is static to me. I like my iPhone and iPad and all that. I'm listening to Apple music as I type this. So I really don't care. I wasn't ever a really big sports fan either, so meh.

But if you're looking for a way to lose money and peeve a lot of your customer base, this is probably the anabolic steroids route to doing that.....
Click to expand...


Dude, preach! You are bang-on. Couldn’t agree more!
 
  • Like
Reactions: hooptyuber, javade, mcdawg and 5 others
She still looks the same to me after so many years. I don't really follow her to like or hate her but she has made a lot of money just connecting with everyday women with her platform.
 
santaliqueur said:
Never heard of her. Sounds like Joe Rogan for women.
Click to expand...
A strong, powerful, black woman billionaire with global popularity in the, what, hundreds of millions? is bound to be threatening to many 🤷‍♂️

Let the insults flow, I don’t think she cares 🤣

btw she’s the kingmaker who brought us Dr. Oz and Dr. Phil. Now that pisses me off 🤬

I don’t think I’ll ever be able to get over that. The two biggest quacks in television history if you ask me.
 
  • Haha
  • Disagree
  • Like
Reactions: J.J. Sefton, Jim Higgins and Menneisyys2
GeoStructural said:
I don’t know who is behind Apple’s programming ideas. Are you sure this is what your audience is expecting?
Click to expand...
They’ve got good metrics on what their customers are watching and listening to and they serve to that. This is exactly what their audience is expecting. :D
 
PickUrPoison said:
A strong, powerful, black woman billionaire with global popularity in the, what, hundreds of millions? is bound to be threatening to many 🤷‍♂️

Let the insults flow, I don’t think she cares 🤣
Click to expand...

I love when people try to get heroic when they fail to understand a VERY obvious joke.

I guess some people really do need sarcasm tags.
 
  • Like
Reactions: lpc2, mcdawg, Menneisyys2 and 3 others
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back