Her “O Magazine” became the most successful start-up in the history of the industry

With the support of Hearst Communications, Winfrey launched a monthly American magazine, "O, The Oprah Magazine" or "O," on April 19, 2000. The goal of the journal was to inspire young, confident, and intellectual women to pursue their aspirations, express their own style, and make sensible decisions. It also includes a celebration of life, style, spirituality, the arts, and culture. "O" outsold leading American women's magazines in less than a month after its debut, with a circulation of more than 2 million copies. "O" was named the most successful start-up in the history of the business by Fortune in 2002, it is also considered one of the major achievements of Oprah Winfrey.

It has been nominated for the American Society of Magazine Editors General Excellence Award multiple times since then. Its first international edition was released in April 2002 in South Africa, with a readership of over 300,000. O Magazine had a circulation of more than 16 million by 2008. O Magazine boosted its newsstand sales by 5.8% to 662,304 copies in 2009 when most US magazine sales were declining. Winfrey's personal engagement with the journal has influenced all elements of its design and editorial content. The O magazine has acquired a considerable online readership of close to 8 million monthly visitors in the previous decade as advertisers steadily shifted online.