On the December 10 edition of his nationally syndicated radio program, Bill O'Reilly took a call from a listener who said of Oprah Winfrey's endorsement of Sen. Barack Obama (D-NY) for president: “It sounds like she's voting for him because he's black.” O'Reilly responded: “I don't think your assessment is wrong.” He added: “I would like to talk to her about it, but again, they kept Oprah away, as is the Barack Obama campaign.” He later stated: “I think it would be an interesting interview to find out exactly what is it about Barack Obama that Oprah admires and thinks is worthy as far as how the country is going to be administered.”

Earlier on the program, O'Reilly had aired three separate clips of Winfrey's speeches about Obama, two from her December 8 speech in Des Moines, Iowa, which was broadcast on CNN:

WINFREY: I not only care about this country, but there are times that I even worry about what happens to our country, and that is why, for the very first time in my life, I feel compelled to stand up and to speak out for the man who I believe has a new vision for America.

WINFREY: And because we only get to choose one, I came out in the cold today to tell you why I believe that choice needs to be Barack Obama.

And another from her speech in Columbia, South Carolina, on December 9:

WINFREY: The reason I love Barack Obama is because he speaks to the potential inside of every one of us. ... I believe that Barack Obama will lead with a sense of strength and conviction, with honor and compassion and with an unyielding focus on what we all can make together of our national future.

After airing these clips, O'Reilly stated: “OK. But she really didn't tell us why. She just likes him. Now, I guess she's against the Iraq war, and that's Obama's big deal, that he, in the very beginning, opposed that war. That's what he's got going. But, otherwise, as a senator and a legislator in Illinois, he hasn't really done that much. So, we really don't know his vision so much ... at this juncture.”

In fact, Winfrey has recently spoken publicly about her reasons for supporting Obama. In her Des Moines speech, Winfrey said:

WINFREY: So I challenge you, I challenge you, I challenge you to see through those people who try and convince you that experience with politics as usual is more valuable than wisdom won from years of serving people outside the walls of Washington, D.C. I challenge you to think about that, because Barack Obama's early training in the trenches of community organizing, working in the poor neighborhoods to change the palette of poverty and crime and unemployment gave him a lot of experience in relieving the burdens of those who are beleaguered. His track record in the Illinois and national Senate show his bipartisan efforts to earn families across our great state of Illinois more than $100 million in tax cuts. His advocacy for legislation and support of early childhood education, because he knows education is the door of opportunity, and his opposition to racial profiling, offer a glimpse into his political pedigree.

And as a U.S. senator, again, from my great state of Illinois, Obama has fought for disability pay for veterans. He worked to boost the nonproliferation of deadly weapons. He advocated the use of alternative fuels to cure our national addiction to oil. He has spoken out against our government's indifference to the poor and to political incompetence in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

And he has rallied against genocide in Darfur, and long before it was the popular thing to do, he stood with clarity and conviction against this war in Iraq.

We need a president with clarity and conviction, who knows how to consult his own conscience and proceed with moral authority. We need Barack Obama.

Two days after O'Reilly made his comments, ABC's Good Morning America aired an interview with Winfrey, in which she said that she is supporting Obama “not because of the color of his skin,” but “because of what he represents. And I do think that he represents a sense of hope.” She continued: “He is a black man and I'm very happy about that. But that is not the reason why I would be supporting him is because he's black man -- because he's not the first black man who's ever run for president.” When host Diane Sawyer asked, “One question somebody asked: Tell me what role both being of the same race plays in your relationship to him ... your feeling about him at this moment,” Winfrey replied: "[T]o think that I would just be in support of somebody because of the color of their skin would mean we hadn't moved very far from Dr. King's speech in 1963, saying that we want people to be judged by the content of their character and not by the color of their skin."

From the December 10 edition of Westwood One's The Radio Factor with Bill O'Reilly:

O'REILLY: Now, the big news over the weekend was Oprah running around in support of Barack Obama, her guy. Now, again, do I have a problem with this? No. I don't have a problem with it. She's -- she thinks he'd be the best president. She's an American citizen, famous, of course, but she can do that. I don't have a problem with it.

Let me give you some stats here before we get to the analysis. This is from Pew Research, just came out, and -- no, it didn't. This is -- no, this is an old poll. I'm not gonna use this poll. That's a couple of months old. Let's use the Fox News poll. That's newer.

Here's the Fox News/Opinion Dynamic Poll. It just came out, and it says, “Does Oprah Winfrey's endorsement of Barack Obama make you more or less likely to vote for him for president?” And “more likely”: 13; “less likely”: 30. No difference: 54. Whoa. Hoo-hoo.

“Do you think it's appropriate for Oprah Winfrey to use her celebrity and TV show to encourage people to vote for Barack Obama?” Yes, appropriate: 49; no, inappropriate: 45; don't know: 6.

OK, so according to Fox News/Opinion Dynamic, not gonna help Obama, but where it will help, in my opinion, is in some of the primaries. Now, Oprah shows up in Iowa, New Hampshire, and big in South Carolina, and says this. Roll the tape.

WINFREY [audio clip]: The reason I love Barack Obama is because he speaks to the potential inside of every one of us. ... I believe that Barack Obama will lead with a sense of strength and conviction, with honor and compassion and with an unyielding focus on what we all can make together of our national future. [...]

I not only care about this country, but there are times that I even worry about what happens to our country, and that is why, for the very first time in my life, I feel compelled to stand up and to speak out for the man who I believe has a new vision for America. [...]

And because we only get to choose one, I came out in the cold today to tell you why I believe that choice needs to be Barack Obama.

O'REILLY: OK. But she really didn't tell us why. She just likes him. Now, I guess she's against the Iraq war, and that's Obama's big deal, that he, in the very beginning, opposed that war. That's what he's got going. But, otherwise, as a senator and a legislator in Illinois, he hasn't really done that much. So, we really don't know his vision so much, you know, at this juncture, although I think Barack Obama is very charismatic and certainly expresses himself very well -- I hope that's not insulting to anyone. I like his style. Substance, I don't know.

[...]

O'REILLY: Let's go to Cheryl, Buford, South Carolina. Go.

CALLER: How you doin' today, Bill?

O'REILLY: Hey.

CALLER: I was really put off by Oprah's endorsement of Obama. It came off to me -- she sounded like a preacher: the way she phrased things, the sound of her voice. She sounded very -- excuse me -- but very kind of fake preachy.

O'REILLY: Hmm-mm.

CALLER: I didn't -- it came -- I didn't like it. And then she made reference to the Dr. King, his dream, and now we get to vote his dream into office. It sounds to me like -- and she also said he has no experience. It sounds like she's voting for him because he's black.

O'REILLY: Well, I think Oprah Winfrey -- I don't think your assessment is wrong. I would like to talk to her about it, but again, they kept Oprah away, as is the Barack Obama campaign. Now, were you there? Or did you just see it on TV?

CALLER: No, I saw it on TV. I happen to be in Columbia just prior to her being there, and it was a big deal down here.

O'REILLY: Well, you know, you gotta -- I think you gotta cut Oprah a little slack on the presentation. I mean, she doesn't do this for a living. She doesn't really, you know -- she's out there. She's trying to get people jazzed up, trying to talk in a way that is maybe a revivalist style. But I, you know -- I think it would be an interesting interview to find out exactly what is it about Barack Obama that Oprah admires and thinks is worthy as far as how the country is going to be administered. Because we're living in a very complex time, and you know -- we talk about this every day. These issues that we're facing now are enormously complicated.

From the December 12 edition of ABC's Good Morning America:

SAWYER: One question somebody asked: Tell me what role both being of the same race plays in your relationship to him, your feeling about him, your feeling about him at this moment.

WINFREY: Well, I'm a little -- I get a little -- I can't -- well, maybe the word is “offended” -- to think that I would just be in support of somebody because of the color of their skin would mean we hadn't moved very far from Dr. King's speech in 1963, saying that we want people to be judged by the content of their character and not by the color of their skin. And as I said in my opening speech in Iowa, I, over the years, have voted for as many Republicans as I have Democrats.

WINFREY [audio clip]: Over the years, I voted for as many Republicans as I have Democrats.

SAWYER: Everyone says, “Which Republicans?”

WINFREY: Wait a minute. No. Yeah, I know. They want to know that. And then, which wasn't -- didn't go over very well in that crowd.

DENZEL WASHINGTON (actor): I bet!

WINFREY: Then I realized, “Oh, I'm with all Democrats. OK.”

But no, it's not because of the color of his skin, it's because of what he represents. And I do think that he represents a sense of hope. He is a black man, and I'm very happy about that. But that is not the reason why I would be supporting him is because he's black man -- 'cause he's not the first black man that's ever run for president.

SAWYER: That's true.