Since then, the rise of digital media and its endless screen time options have profoundly affected the power of major broadcasters. As the public fragmented, opportunities for mandatory prime-time interviews became increasingly rare. Even the biggest one-on-one encounters of the past few years did not have the attractiveness of the specials of two decades ago and more. The 17.1 million audience for Ms. Winfrey’s interview with Mrs. Markle and Prince Harry corresponded to the number of viewers who watched when Caitlyn Jenner revealed that she was transgender to Ms. Sawyer in a 2015 episode of the “ 20/20 ”from ABC.
The Sunday night special was unusual in that it was not overseen by a network news division. Winfrey’s company, Harpo Productions, produced it, and CBS paid at least $ 7 million to license the program, according to a person familiar with the deal. (The Wall Street Journal released the number earlier.) The deal was also a gamble: it was recorded after the broadcaster bought the rights, according to two people who knew how the program was done. During the interview, Winfrey said he had been trying to get exclusivity with the couple for about three years.
CBS was the winning bidder, despite Winfrey’s difficult experience in “60 Minutes”, where she was a special contributor in 2017 and 2018. In a 2019 interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Winfrey revealed that the show’s producers criticized her presentation, saying that she had “too much emotion” in her voice, even when she said her own name. (Mrs. Winfrey maintained a connection to the network through her good friend Gayle King, an anchor on “CBS This Morning,” and she appeared on that program on Monday.)
To further complicate CBS’s attempt to win the grand prize, was the tangle of media companies around Winfrey and the former royal couple. Ms. Winfrey has her own cable network, OWN, and is an important part of the AppleTV + streaming platform. Recent episodes of Apple’s “The Oprah Conversation” featured interviews with Barack Obama, Dolly Parton and Mariah Carey.
Mrs. Markle and Prince Harry, for their part, signed a multi-year contract with Netflix last year to make documentaries and other programs. They also signed a contract to make podcasts for Spotify and released the first installment on December 29. It included appearances by Elton John, Tyler Perry and other celebrities, as well as his son Archie’s first public statement.
The pact between CBS and Harpo Productions was largely focused on TV rights. The interview was broadcast live on ViacomCBS ‘newly renamed streaming service, Paramount +; but at least for now it will not be available on Paramount + for viewing on demand. Instead, the special will be available on CBS.com and the CBS app for 30 days, said a CBS spokesman.
Originally scheduled for 90 minutes, it ended up being a two-hour show. Before the broadcast, CBS released a teaser, and British tabloids that were not friendly with Ms. Markle responded with items of anonymous origin about their apparent crimes.
The estimated 17.1 million viewers will only grow after Nielsen has tabulated some viewers who broadcast the special, as well as the performance away from home.