Oprah Opens Up About How Barbara Walters Influenced Her Decision to Remain Childless
Oprah Winfrey is looking back on how the late Barbara Walters had an unexpected impact on her decision not to have children.
In the upcoming Hulu documentary "Barbara Walters: Tell Me Everything," the 71-year-old media icon shared that Walters' complicated family life and intense career focus made a lasting impression on her.
"I remember her telling me once that there's nothing more fulfilling than having children, and 'You should really think about it,'" Winfrey recalled in the documentary, according to The Daily Beast. "And I was like, 'Okay, but I'm looking at you, so, no.'"
Walters, who died in 2022 at age 93, became a single mother in 1968 when she adopted her only child, daughter Jacqueline with then-husband Lee Guber. As the years passed their relationship had become increasingly strained, with Walters and others publicly sharing stories of how difficult it was to be a parent in the limelight.
Winfrey, who has been in a decades-long relationship with Stedman Graham, has never married or had any children. Walters' experience, she said, helped bring home the reminder that parenting and high-profile careers are often mutually exclusive.
"You are a pioneer in your field and you are trying to break the mold, for yourself and for women who are going to follow you," Winfrey said. "Something's going to have to give for that. And that is why I did not have children. I knew I could not do both well."
And yet, Walters is known for having said about her daughter, "My daughter's a blessing. My world came together. I mean, I was already on the Today show, and I'd had three miscarriages, and now I had everything." But Jacqueline battled drug use as a teenager and, at 16, ran away from home for a month. In the documentary, Walters confessed that she felt "guilty" for not understanding how hard parenting would become, given the scrutiny of her in the public eye.
Cynthia McFadden, a close friend, said that Walters often lamented her relationship with Jacqueline and admitted that she had made many mistakes as a mom.
A Legacy Of Sacrifices
Winfrey emphasized that choosing her career meant sacrificing motherhood. "At no time have I ever heard a story, read a story, and based on what I know of Barbara Walters — at no time has Barbara Walters ever said, 'No, let someone else take that story.'"
Following Walters' death, she also honored Walters' impact on journalism, saying, "Without Barbara Walters there wouldn't have been me — nor any other woman you see on evening, morning, and daily news."
In previous interviews, Winfrey has also said that she feels no regrets.
"Doing 'The Oprah Winfrey Show' allowed me to see the depth of responsibility and sacrifice that is actually required to be a mother," she told PEOPLE. "I realized, 'Whoa, I'm talking to a lot of messed-up people, and they are messed up because they had mothers and fathers who were not aware of how serious that job is.'"
"Barbara Walters: Tell Me Everything" debuts on June 23 on Hulu.
