A tweet from the talk show host’s Twitter account asked followers, “Every 1 who can please turn to OWN especially if u have a Nielsen box,” in what seems to be a plea to boost ratings numbers.

Winfrey publically apologized for the tweet, which was subsequently deleted — after being informed that the move may have violated Nielsen policy prohibiting networks from influencing ratings.

“I removed the tweet at the request of Nielsen,” Winfrey said in a statement Monday. “ I intended no harm and apologize for the reference.”

A Nielsen representative told The New York Times that an asterisk will be attached to OWN’s ratings

around the time the offending tweet was sent to account for possible bias.

At the time of the tweet, an episode of “Oprah's Next Chapter,” the Oprah Winfrey Network’s signature show, was airing that featured the TV mogul visiting Hassidic Jewish families in Brooklyn.

She was almost immediately hit with a backlash: Several followers accused her of “being desperate.”

“The word ‘please’ is used as courtesy not a beg … ‘desperate’ not ever a part of my vocab … ,” Winfrey responded, according to EW.com

OWN debuted in January 2011, eight months before Winfrey ended her hugely popular television talk show, but the channel has since been rocked by changes at the executive level, programming shifts and weak ratings.

Discovery, Winfrey’s partner on the channel, spent $250 million in getting the network off the ground — but has little to show yet for its hefty investment.


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