Oprah Winfrey Says Barbara Walters Influenced Her Decision Not To Have Children

Oprah Winfrey Says Barbara Walters Influenced Her Decision Not To Have Children

Oprah Winfrey is opening up about one of the reasons she chose not to have children, and it has everything to do with the late broadcast legend Barbara Walters.

In the new documentary Barbara Walters: Tell Me Everything, Oprah, 71, revealed a candid conversation she once had with Walters, who adopted daughter Jackie Danforth after suffering multiple miscarriages.

“I remember her telling me once that there’s nothing more fulfilling than having children, and ‘You should really think about it,’” Oprah recalls in the film. “And I was like, ‘Okay, but I’m looking at you, so no.’”

Winfrey described Walters’ relationship with her daughter as “complex” and “charged,” and admitted, “It was one of the reasons why I never had children.”

The film also includes archival footage of Walters speaking on motherhood and her struggle to balance it all, saying:

“Today, people are more accepting. You can bring your kid to the office. In those days, if I had brought Jackie into the studio, it would be as if I had bought a dog who was not housebroken.”

Despite the love between them, the relationship remained strained over the years, with Jackie navigating a difficult youth before stepping away from the spotlight entirely.

Winfrey’s reflection adds a powerful layer to Walters’ legacy, highlighting the pressures placed on pioneering women in media and the complicated choices that come with breaking barriers.

What are your thoughts on Oprah’s remark