Oprah Only Black On 400 Richest American List 2009

Forbes magazine has released it's annual ranking of America's 400 richest people. For only the fifth time since 1982, the collective net worth of The Forbes 400, has declined, falling $300 billion in the past 12 months from $1.57 trillion to $1.27 trillion.

For the 16th straight year, America's richest man is Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates. Warren Buffett, who lost $10 billion from his personal balance sheet this year is America's second-richest citizen. 

Rounding out the top 10 on The Forbes 400: Oracle founder Larry Ellison ($27 billion); Wal-Mart heirs Christy Walton ($21.5 billion), Jim C. Walton ($19.6 billion), Alice Walton ($19.3 billion), and S. Robson Walton ($19 billion); media maven Michael Bloomberg ($17.5 billion) and energy titans Charles and David Koch ($16 billion each).

The 10 richest Americans lost a combined $39.2 billion in the past 12 months, a 14% decline.

Oprah Winfrey is once again the on Black American on the Forbes 400 list. Winfrey saw her net worth declined over the past year to $2.3 billion, making her the 141st richest American.  The queen of television talk cantinues the expansion of her empire. Last year she partnered with Discovery Communications to create the Oprah Winfrey Network but the launch date has been pushed back to 2010.

SOURCE: Forbes magazine