- Playing
- Oprah Spins a Yarn
- From
- Ken Cormier
After it was revealed that the bestselling memoir A Million Little Pieces contained fabrications, Oprah asked author James Frey, "Why did you lie?" But did Oprah create a fiction of her own?
More from Ken Cormier
9/11: A View from Adolescence
(07:36)
From: Ken Cormier
On September 11, 2001, Kenzi was eleven years old, Chelsea was twelve, and Iliana was fourteen. This project aims to give voice to those who witnessed the events of 9/11 from ...
Dad's Naughty Pictures
(07:43)
From: Ken Cormier
A man makes a book out of his late father's secret illustrations
The Lumberyard: A Radio Magazine of Poetry, Prose, and Music (3:2)
(28:33)
From: Ken Cormier
Patricia Smith, Naeem Murr, songs by Matt Sheehy, and more!
The Lumberyard: A Radio Magazine of Poetry, Prose, and Music (3:1)
(29:31)
From: Ken Cormier
Stories and poems about "mother," sublime songs by Team Turnip, and more!
Related Pieces
Piece Description
After it was revealed that the bestselling memoir A Million Little Pieces contained fabrications, Oprah asked author James Frey, "Why did you lie?" But did Oprah create a fiction of her own?
Broadcast History
Has not aired nationally.
Transcript
756 words
Oprah Spins a Yarn
Ken Cormier
By now we are all familiar with Oprah Winfrey?s public chastisement of author James Frey for the exaggerations and fabrications he sneaked into in his best-selling memoir A Million Little Pieces. The confrontation came just four months after Oprah had chosen his true-life tale of drug addiction for her coveted Book Club list.
?Why did you lie?? asked Oprah, amidst the boos and jeers of the studio audience. According to Frey, he was no con artist, because the book is still about addiction, and ?nobody's disputing that I was a drug addict.?
But Oprah wasn?t buying it. ?I think you presented a false person,? she said. ?I feel that you betrayed millions of readers.?
Here?s the evidence: James Frey was not in jail for as long as he said he was; his friend committed suicide by slashing her wrists, not hanging herself; and he probably wa...
Read the full transcript
Related Website
