Legal Question in Personal Injury in Illinois

I would have thought that Oprah could afford an attorney.

Well, possibly. Truth is an absolute defense to a defamation case. If Oprah is indeed a witch, then it would not be slander. It depends on what the defamatory statement is. If you call someone a thief, that will almost always be slanderous. However, if you call someone ugly, that is a matter of personal opinion, and may not be slanderous. Nevertheless, your mother's advice "...if you can't say anything nice about someone, you should keep your mouth shut" remains excellent advice.