Discovery Communications President and CEO David Zaslav and Oprah Winfrey announce the launch of "OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network", Jan. 15, 2008, in Chicago. (Discovery Communications Photo)

U.S. daytime talk show host Oprah Winfrey is to jointly create the Oprah Winfrey Network, with cable programming company Discovery Communications, Winfrey and Discovery announced Wednesday.

The cable television channel will make its debut in mid-2009 on what is now the Discovery Health Channel.

Winfrey will serve as chairwoman of the network, will have full editorial control over OWN and will be responsible for its "programming, branding and creative vision," the companies said.

Discovery and Winfrey would immediately begin a search for a chief executive for OWN, said David Zaslav, president and chief executive of Discovery.

Winfrey was host of a 12-part series called "Oprah Goes Online" on Oxygen cable channel, which Winfrey said "did not reflect my voice."

With the Oprah Winfrey Network, "I will have editorial control," she said. "I have a vision for what we want to accomplish with this network."

Details of program plans aren't yet decided.

(Xinhua/Agencies January 16, 2008)