CBS Corp. on Thursday was faced with rumors about the possible departure of Oprah Winfrey's talk show from broadcast television to her own cable channel, The Oprah Winfrey Network. CBS Corp. Chief Executive Leslie Moonves said Thursday that talks were under way to keep her show from leaving. CBS Television Distribution earns revenue by selling "The Oprah Winfrey Show" to local TV stations nationwide, and in most large markets her show appears on the local ABC affiliate, although it also runs on local NBC, CBS and Fox stations. Winfrey is in the 24th season of her talk show, and she remains the queen of daytime television. But ratings are down and the average viewership for "The Oprah Winfrey Show" slipped under 7 million last season, down 7 percent from the year before, according to Nielsen Media Research. In a statement released Thursday, Winfrey's production company, Harpo Productions, said "she has not made a decision yet" on a move to cable but will make one before the end of the year. CBS Television Distribution also issued a statement saying "nothing has changed." "The decision is Oprah's to make," it said. "As we have stated repeatedly, we love Oprah and if she wants to continue her show then we want to continue to be in business with her." Continued... |