Oprah Winfrey responds to criticism about her past affiliation with Dr Phil and Dr Oz

Oprah Winfrey has responded to criticism about her past affiliation with Dr Phil and Dr Oz.

Since initially appearing on The Oprah Winfrey Show as guests, both men launched their own talk shows and have since gone on to become high-profile supporters of Donald Trump.

Dr Mehmet Oz leads the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, while Dr Phil McGraw serves as a member of Trump's Religious Liberty Commission and has been present during ICE raids.

"People criticize me for Dr Phil and Dr Oz, because of their politics or their views," Oprah said in an interview with Emmy Magazine. "At the time, the reason and intention behind me giving them their breaks was I thought they had valuable information to share that had been meaningful to me."

She went on to explain that she was introduced to Dr Oz by Gayle King. "He explained practical things like colon cancer and bowel movements. I thought he had the language for explaining medical things in a way that was helpful to me," she said. "I thought it would be helpful to many other people. And that is how they ended up on the show."

She met Dr Phil through a libel lawsuit. "He was so practical, so down to earth, so real. And he would ride in the car with me every morning on the way to trial, where I'm literally sitting on trial for six weeks. I felt that he was so instrumental in helping me. I thought, 'Oh, you could help a lot of people. You should come on my show.'"

Speaking about what the men are doing now, she said, "Everybody has their own path in life, and it has not one thing to do with me, and I don't have one thing to do with them."