Seal says Oprah Winfrey has been "part of the problem for decades" following sexual harassment speech

Following a roundly acclaimed speech by Oprah Winfrey at the Golden Globes about sexual harassment in Hollywood, British singer Seal has accused her of hypocrisy, saying Winfrey was “part of the problem for decades”.

At the awards ceremony on Sunday, Winfrey heralded the way women have spoken out about sexual assault and misconduct in Hollywood, following the allegations made against Harvey Weinstein and others.

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“For too long, women have not been heard or believed if they dared to speak their truth to the power of those men,” said Winfrey.

Seal then shared two photos of Winfrey and Weinstein together, with the words printed on top: “When you have been part of the problem for decades, but suddenly they all think you are the solution.”

The singer wrote a sarcastic comment underneath suggesting that Winfrey was aware of Weinstein’s alleged behaviour all along.

“Oh I forgot, that's right....you'd heard the rumours but you had no idea he was actually serially assaulting young stary-eyed actresses who in turn had no idea what they were getting into. My bad. #SanctimoniousHollywood,” he wrote.

Meanwhile, Winfrey’s speech has sparked heavy speculation that the actress and talk-show host might run for US president at the next election.

In a BBC interview with Andrew Marr which will be broadcast on his show this Sunday, The Post director Steven Spielberg and its stars Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks all voice their support for a Winfrey presidency.

Streep said she had heard Winfrey "is really considering" running for office and believes she has “the voice of a leader”.

Spielberg, meanwhile, said: "Oprah's had 35 years experience of building bridges and creating conversations between disparate people who don't agree... on her syndicated television show. For me, those are credentials for qualification."

And Hanks added: "I believe Oprah wakes up in the morning and both personally and professionally wonders what she can do specifically in order to make the world a better place."

Alluding to President Trump, Hanks continued: "We have proven, I think, just within the last few years, that if you want to be president of the United States, guess what, there's a way that that can happen."

Winfrey hasn’t yet commented on the speculation, but Trump has. "I like Oprah but I don't think she's going to run," he said, adding that it would be "a lot of fun" to go up against her.