Oprah Winfrey is facing fierce backlash over her latest discussion about going ‘no contact’ with family members.
The 71-year-old has been accused of inappropriately framing the debate when tackling the topic for her eponymous podcast.
She first kicked off the discourse by uploading a video to her Instagram account for her 22.4 million followers to tease the upcoming episode.
The talk show host discussed the issue as a shifting cultural conversation, as she explained: ‘Around one third of Americans have cut off ties from their family.
‘Once considered taboo, going no contact with your family is now being openly discussed by people of all ages.
‘People are now redefining what healthy boundaries look like in family dynamics.’
She explained guests would include ‘experts, adult children who have cut off their parents and parents who have been estranged.’
But, after the episode aired, some viewers felt Winfrey approached the ‘no contact’ debate the wrong way entirely.
Many people online questioned why the idea was presented as a broader trend rather than a personal boundary shaped by individual experience.
And, with this, comments flooded in that the host had reduced the reality of abuse, neglect, and unresolved conflict.
‘I understand why people go “no contact,”‘ one wrote. ‘I don’t understand why Oprah is showcasing it in this way that makes it seem like a cult.’
‘Dear Oprah, SHUT UP! You have no clue about what people go through and calling no contact a trend is just letting abusers keep abusing,’ another shared.
Elsewhere, the TikTok creator known as Spiritual Whistleblower accused Oprah of ‘gaslighting her audience’ before describing the podcast as ‘a grift and scam.’
‘No contact is not a trend. It’s a final decision. Because when you have a narcissist for a parent, and most baby boomers are narcissists, period, they will not try to hear you.
‘And what ends up happening? Your mental health takes a beating, your physical health.’
Dr Sherrie, another content creator, also responded saying: ‘Estrangement is not a failure and it’s not a trend.
‘It’s so reckless to call it a trend. It’s a response. It’s what happens when you have exhausted every reasonable effort and the relationship is still very harmful to you.’
Winfrey has previously spoken about creating boundaries within her own life, particularly within her family.
In 2021, she shared parts of her upbringing in her book, What Happened to You?: Conversations on Trauma, Resilience, and Healing, and has shared some of her harrowing experiences as a young child to social media.
The media mogul opened up about the abuse she suffered as a child, speaking candidly about how her grandmother would ‘whup’ her regularly and for the ‘slightest reasons’ – and how that turned her into a ‘world-class people pleaser’ who had trouble setting boundaries well into adulthood.
