Oprah's Jury Selected

By Stephen M. Silverman

Tuesday August 11, 1998 12:00 AM EDT

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An eight-member jury, consisting of three men and five women, was chosen in Chicago yesterday to hear a lawsuit that accuses Oprah Winfrey of copyright infringement. The case, which the Associated Press says is expected to last approximately eight days, concerns the talk show queen's use of 11 photos in her best-selling 1996 fitness book, "Make the Connection: Ten Steps to a Better Body and a Better Life," which she co-wrote with fitness pro Bob Greene. Winfrey claims that she paid photographers Paul Natkin and Stephen Gre en more than $250,000 for an array of pictures and the right to use them in any manner she saw, er, fit. But they are suing, claiming that she only had the right to use the shots in publicity kits, not in a book. In the courtroom yesterday, Oprah, who could possibly take the stand once the case kicks in, reportedly sat at the defense table with her lawyers, listening intently as Judge Ruben Castillo queried prospective jurors.