Oprah Winfrey says she prevented Whitney Houston's life from being ruined by keeping photos of a drug-induced stage fall from leaking to the media.
Speaking at France's Lumière Theatre while receiving Cannes' LionHeart Award, Oprah revealed the cover-up.
She said the last time Whitney was on her show, she had just relapsed and was so high she fell off the stage.
Oprah said she begged the audience not to tell anyone "because it would ruin her life."
The audience had cameras that day, so pictures of the fall exist. Yet, none have ever been published—a feat Oprah noted would never happen today.
Whitney Houston died in February 2012 at age 48 from accidental drowning.
While Oprah believes she did a good deed, it raises the question: would Whitney have been better served if the photos and story had come out?
She might have hit rock bottom and turned her life around.
