Small-time blogger Shirley Wu has written a perfect letter to Oprah, and I really hope that Ms. Winfrey will see it. Here’s an excerpt:

To me, it is clear that a significant number of people look up to you, and trust your advice and judgment. That is why it is such a huge mistake for you to endorse Jenny McCarthy with her own show on your network.

Surely you must realize that McCarthy is neither a medical professional nor a scientist. And yet she acts as a spokesperson for the anti-vaccination movement, a movement that directly impacts people’s health. Claims that vaccines are unsafe and cause autism have been refuted time after time, but their allure persists in part because of high-profile champions for ignorance like McCarthy.

The letter is clear, factual, calm, and hits the right notes perfectly.

Like it or not, Oprah has a huge influence. I suspect the letter above is not even enough; she needs to actively denounce what McCarthy is saying. Still, we take what we can. Oprah now has a chance to lay down a path to either promote thousands of children getting sick and even dying, or to perhaps save those same lives.