People Want Oprah to Interview Britney Spears Next

First Meghan Markle, next Britney Spears? 

There was a time—before the Notes App apology, before the “telling my side of the story” teary-eyed YouTuber confessional—when, if you were a celebrity with something to say, you went on Oprah. It was a rite of passage. James Frey, the Million Little Pieces guy, went on Oprah. Tom Cruise jumped on a couch on Oprah. That “So, what is the truth?” GIF is from Oprah Winfrey talking to Lindsay Lohan. It’s hard to overstate how much the public relied on Winfrey at that time for insight into celebrities’ lives. 

We were reminded of this Sunday night, March 7, when Winfrey sat down with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. And now people want the iconic interviewer to talk to Britney Spears. 

Spears’s conservatorship and personal life became of massive public interest in February after the premiere of Framing Britney Spears, a documentary that reminded everyone just how much she’s been through. Fans are very keen on hearing the pop icon’s side of the story, unfiltered, and they think Winfrey is the right one for the job.  

“Say it with me now: CBS Presents Oprah with Britney Spears,” one person tweeted. 

“Having also watched Framing Britney Spears tonight, here’s hoping Oprah gets that interview, too,” posted another.

One of the moments that went viral from Framing Britney Spears is Spears’s 2003 interview with Diane Sawyer, who interrogated the young star in a way many now see as unfair, judgmental, and invasive. In light of the conversations about that, I think there could be real value in having Spears and Winfrey sit down to talk as peers, in a respectful way. Winfrey is great at getting people to open up–that’s her job, after all–but she’s also a compassionate person. If Spears is going to break her silence, it should be with someone tactful, like Winfrey.