Ellen Degeneres When One Thinks

Ellen Degeneres

When one thinks of daytime T.V., one can't help but picture Jerry Springer or Maury and the salacious and often fake stories they play day after day. However, Ellen Degeneres is quite the opposite, and although she resides within the same time frame, her show is a testament to encouragement and enabling the hearts of her audience to be who they were born to be and not be afraid of exposing their true selves to the world. Through her show, she has enabled the hearts of millions to appreciate themselves and their identities no matter how society may respond to them for doing so.

Ellen is an incredibly strong person. She is definitely not afraid to take risks nor to admit mistakes and learn from her negative experiences as a way to propel her into greater success in the future. Ellen recently departed from the show "American Idol" in 2010 because she felt the show was not right for her, and was not about to be pressured into staying just because of the monetary value (Stelter 2010). Essentially, Ellen wants to always remain true to herself, which has what made her such a strong leader throughout her career, both in its ups and its downs. In this respect, Ellen has incredibly integrity as an artist and performer, thus making her stands out in an industry that is so notoriously superficial.

Her greatest influence on her audience is for them to be themselves. She enables their hearts to embrace their own individuality and not be afraid to be who they were born to be. Her career was almost finished at the canceling of her sitcom "Ellen" in 1997 (Pizello 2010). After three years on the air, Ellen had gained a strong fan base. But when her character, and eventually her, came out to the public as being gay, there was a harsh reaction from ABC which promptly cancelled the show. Ellen was willing to take the risk to be more truthful to her self and her audience. According to the research, Ellen "is also one of its most beloved gay entertainers -- and one of the few who markets herself as such," (Pizello 2010).She was willing to put her career on the line to become one of the few female celebrities to come out as being lesbian. This essentially inspired many within the LBGT community to embrace their own individualities and face the world as gay individuals, despite the misunderstandings from the external world that may try to bring them down. Ellen has helped put LBGT issues in the mainstream with her influence and popularity. In a country that has seen so much controversy about LBGT rights, especially regarding marriage in California, Ellen really inspires people and also exposes others who are not gay to a greater understanding of the gay community. Ellen even went as far as to marry Portia de Rossi and publish her wedding video on "Oprah" "as part of a major campaign for gay true love and happiness," (Pizello 2010). It is through her real portrayal of her own life that she influences other LBGT individuals to stand up and demand a better status in today's contemporary society.