The Soup: White Oprah

This E! Entertainment episode of The Soup, a weekly dose of edgy humorous commentary on pop culture and television, presents a preview of a fake new talk show hosted by Dina Lohan. “All of Lindsay’s friends call me ‘White Oprah’”, said Dina, a statement The Soup thought a riot in light of the many public problems in the Lohan family (anorexia, drug addiction, missing court dates, etc). The preview’s voice-over makes a joke out of the celebrity mom as qualified to counsel others by praising her marriage and how she raised her kids while images are juxtaposed of a scantily clad Lindsay partying and her husband in handcuffs.

This piece acts as a social corrective because of the harsh nature of the criticism about Dina’s job as a parent and role model. Some of the references seem like “low blows”—such as Dina’s expert status on “how to live vicariously through your child”. Because the studio audience laughed at Dina, the idea that celebrity lifestyle is based on corrupted morals is reinforced.

“White Oprah.” The Soup. Host Joel McHale. E! Entertainment. 15 Nov. 2006.
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