If the earnings of Oprah Winfrey, Ellen DeGeneres and Ryan Seacrest are any indication, talk is anything but cheap in the US, according to the Forbes website.
“The best-paid personalities are paid top dollar to gab, whether it be on a daytime syndicated series (Judge Judy), a late-night talk show (Jay Leno) or a highly rated radio show (Rush Limbaugh). In fact, the 12 bold-faced names on the list collectively banked $829 million between 1 June 2008, and 1 June 2009.”
The Queen of All Media, Oprah, tops the list with estimated earnings of $275 million. As Forbes this is particularly impressive when one considers how the industries in which she operates – television, radio and magazines – are shrinking in the face of increased competition and a dismal ad market.
Though ratings for Winfrey’s flagship series, The Oprah Winfrey Show, continue to erode, her earning power remains remarkably resilient.
