A cultural reckoning is currently taking place in the United States of America, which is being spurred by movements such as MeToo and the reinvigorated Black Lives Matter movement in the wake of George Floyd’s murder in the year 2020. Oprah Winfrey is currently facing additional attention as a result of her direct questioning of the Olsen twins about their “size” during an interview in the year 2004, which occurred in the midst of accusations that the twins, who were then 17 years old, were battling with an eating disorder.
Because of the considerable uproar that has been caused by the resurfacing of the film on the internet, Oprah has been forced to defend herself against allegations of insensitivity. It was during this time that Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen were apparently struggling with an eating disorder that the interview took place. This interview drew light on the difficulties that child stars confront.
During the interview, Oprah, who was 50 years old at the time, tackled the accusations of eating disorders head-on and slid in a question regarding the girls’ weights, which caught them off guard. Ashley made an effort to deflect the attention by highlighting the fact that people would write whatever they wanted, regardless of whether it was favorable or negative, and that this was a consequence of being in the public eye. In spite of this, Oprah disrupted the conversation by asking, “What size are you, by the way?”
In response to the surprise inquiry, Mary-Kate stated that she had always been “petite.” The girls appeared to be stunned by the surprising question. In a mocking tone, Oprah made the following remark: “Oh, that’s so interesting!” The host of the talk show has been open and honest about her personal battles with weight, and she has even been a spokesperson for Weight Watchers in order to bring her weight under control.
Immediately following the question that caused her discomfort, Oprah made an attempt to recover by humorously expressing her fixation with size and adding, “I’m obsessed with size, and you’re like, ‘I really don’t know!'” “If we were obsessed with our size, it would be, I don’t know, a different story,” Mary-Kate said in response to another question.
Nearly immediately following the interview, Mary-Kate checked herself into a rehabilitation center in order to receive treatment for her anorexia. She remained in the facility for a total of six weeks until being released in July of 2004.
A number of people have expressed their dismay at the resurrected interview, which has led to criticisms of Oprah’s line of questioning:
“Wow. ” Did anyone ever criticize Oprah for doing this? Why is it so inappropriate?
“I am aware that we are living in different times, but I couldn’t believe that they thought it was acceptable!?! Due to the fact that they are young?
A discussion has been raised as a result of the occurrence over the appropriateness of interview questions, particularly with regard to sensitive subjects such as mental health and body image.