Billionaire Biographies

Episode 40 - Michael Bloomberg: Wall Street Data, Media, and Mayoral Power

Michael Bloomberg’s career is a masterclass in leveraging one form of power to gain another. This episode traces his extraordinary journey, beginning with his dismissal from the investment bank Salomon Brothers. With his partner's check, he founded a company based on a single, brilliant idea: that Wall Street would pay a premium for fast, accessible financial data. The result was the Bloomberg Terminal, the iconic black box that became an indispensable tool for every serious trader and financial institution on the planet.
We explore how Bloomberg used the immense, recurring profits from his data empire to launch a global media company, Bloomberg News, which challenged established players like Reuters and the Wall Street Journal. But for Bloomberg, business was just the first act. We then chronicle his stunning pivot into politics, using his personal fortune—spending over $100 million of his own money—to successfully run for Mayor of New York City in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. He would go on to serve for three terms, fundamentally reshaping the city.
This episode examines the seamless integration of finance, media, and political power in one individual. Bloomberg’s story shows how a fortune built on selling information to the elite can be used to gain control of the narrative and, ultimately, to govern. It is a powerful illustration of the modern billionaire's path to influence.

Episode 41 - Rupert Murdoch: Building the Fox Empire

Rupert Murdoch inherited a minor Australian newspaper and transformed it into the most powerful and controversial media empire on the planet. This episode charts the relentless ambition of a man who understood the power of popular, sensationalist media to generate both profit and political influence. We follow his aggressive expansion across the globe, from the British tabloids to the American media landscape, where he acquired 20th Century Fox and launched the Fox television network.
We dissect Murdoch's signature business strategy: identifying undervalued media assets, leveraging massive debt to acquire them, and then reformatting them with a populist, often inflammatory, editorial style. His crowning achievement was the creation of Fox News in 1996, a move that wasn't just a business decision but a political one. He correctly identified a massive, underserved conservative audience and built a cable news channel that would not only dominate the ratings but also come to dominate the Republican Party itself. Murdoch didn't just want to own the news; he wanted to shape the conversation.
This is the story of how one man systematically built a global machine designed to influence public opinion. We explore the shrewd deals and the audacious gambles that allowed him to assemble a kingdom that could make or break politicians. This is the origin story of the world's greatest puppet master.

Episode 42 - Murdoch's Power Play: Hacking, Influence, and Succession

Rupert Murdoch's empire was built on pushing boundaries, but in 2011, the world discovered his company had gone too far. This episode delves into the dark side of the Murdoch machine, focusing on the shocking phone-hacking scandal that erupted in Britain. We expose how journalists at his newspapers, desperate for scoops, had illegally hacked the voicemails of thousands of people, from celebrities and politicians to a murdered schoolgirl, leading to a massive public backlash and the closure of the News of the World.
We investigate the culture of corruption and intimidation that Murdoch fostered within his companies, and the immense political power he wielded to protect his interests. For decades, prime ministers and presidents courted his favor, knowing that his papers' endorsements could determine their political fate. This scandal, for the first time, threatened to bring the entire empire crashing down. We also turn our attention to the question that looms over his kingdom: succession. We analyze the brutal, real-life family drama between his children—Lachlan, James, and Elisabeth—as they vie to inherit their father's throne, a conflict that served as the direct inspiration for the hit HBO series Succession.
This is a story of power, corruption, and the desperate struggle to maintain a legacy. We ask whether the Murdoch empire can survive its own creator and the toxic culture he perfected. The fight for the crown is the final, ultimate power play.

Episode 43 - Sumner Redstone: The Man Who Screamed "Content is King"

Sumner Redstone, a brilliant and notoriously aggressive lawyer from Boston, built a media empire on a single, unwavering belief: "Content is king." This episode chronicles the rise of a man who transformed his family's drive-in movie theater chain into the media behemoth Viacom, which would come to own Paramount Pictures, MTV, Nickelodeon, and CBS. We delve into Redstone's legendary, bare-knuckle takeover battles, most famously his hostile acquisition of Viacom in the 1980s, where he risked everything to win.
We analyze his genius for understanding the intrinsic value of a media library, recognizing that hit movies and television shows could be endlessly repackaged and sold across new platforms, from VHS to cable to international markets. While others focused on distribution, Redstone focused on owning the stories, the characters, and the brands that people loved. His abrasive, often tyrannical, leadership style became legendary in Hollywood, as did his famous declaration that he would live forever and never give up control of his company. He was a corporate titan who ruled his empire with an iron fist.
This episode paints a portrait of a man driven by an insatiable hunger for control. Sumner Redstone's story is a lesson in corporate warfare and the enduring power of great content. He didn't just want a piece of Hollywood; he wanted to own its crown jewels.

Episode 44 - The Redstone War: A Family's Vicious Battle for a Hollywood Media Empire

The final years of Sumner Redstone's life descended into a spectacle of corporate intrigue, family betrayal, and scandalous personal behavior. This episode tells the sordid and gripping story of the war for the Redstone empire, which played out as the aging patriarch's physical and mental health declined. We investigate the competing factions that battled for control, from his long-estranged daughter, Shari Redstone, to the executives at Viacom and CBS, and his two live-in female companions, who stood to inherit millions.
We expose the shocking details that emerged from a series of lawsuits over Redstone's mental competency, including allegations of manipulation, elder abuse, and the lavish gifts he bestowed on his girlfriends. The conflict escalated into a full-blown corporate civil war, as Shari fought to oust the board of Viacom and regain control of her father's legacy, a battle she would eventually win. It was a vicious, public feud that pitted daughter against father and executive against executive, all while a multi-billion-dollar media empire hung in the balance.
This is a story that has it all: sex, money, and a Shakespearean struggle for power. It serves as a grim cautionary tale about the chaos that ensues when a powerful founder fails to plan for succession. The battle for Redstone's kingdom was as dramatic as any movie his studio ever produced.

Episode 45 - The Rise of Disney: From Walt to Iger

The Walt Disney Company is more than just a business; it is a global cultural institution that has shaped the childhoods of generations. This episode explores the evolution of the Disney empire, from Walt Disney’s original, visionary creation to the modern media behemoth it is today. We examine how the company nearly lost its way after Walt's death, before being revitalized in the 1980s by a new management team led by Michael Eisner and Frank Wells, who ushered in the "Disney Renaissance" with films like The Little Mermaid and The Lion King.
We then analyze the company’s transformation under the leadership of Bob Iger, who orchestrated a series of brilliant, multi-billion-dollar acquisitions that would secure Disney’s dominance for the 21st century. Iger didn't just manage the brand; he bought the competition. We go inside the deals for Pixar, Marvel Studios, and Lucasfilm, showing how Iger assembled an unparalleled portfolio of intellectual property, a modern empire of myths and characters that could be monetized across theme parks, merchandise, and streaming services. He understood that in the modern media landscape, you either own the story or you are irrelevant.
This episode dissects the immense cultural power wielded by a single corporation. We explore how Disney has mastered the art of synergy, turning beloved stories into a pervasive and hugely profitable global machine. The story of Disney is the story of how a mouse came to rule the world.

Episode 46 - Carlos Slim Helú: The Man Who Owned Mexico

For a time, Carlos Slim Helú, the son of a Lebanese immigrant to Mexico, was the richest man in the world, surpassing even Bill Gates and Warren Buffett. This episode tells the story of how one man came to dominate the economy of an entire nation. We trace Slim’s career as a shrewd investor who built his fortune by buying undervalued companies, but his masterstroke came in 1990 when he led a group to privatize Mexico's state-owned telephone company, Telmex.
We expose how Slim leveraged his political connections to acquire Telmex and then operate it as a virtual monopoly for years, charging some of the highest rates in the world. This monopoly became the cash cow that funded the expansion of his sprawling business empire, América Móvil, which grew to dominate the telecommunications market across Latin America. We analyze the "Slimlandia" effect, where it became nearly impossible for a Mexican citizen to go a day without paying money to one of his companies, from making a phone call to shopping at a department store or even building a house.
Carlos Slim's story is a classic case study in crony capitalism, demonstrating how a massive fortune can be built through the privatization of public assets and the exploitation of a monopolistic position. While he is a celebrated philanthropist in some circles, his wealth is inextricably linked to the high prices paid by millions of his countrymen. He didn't just do business in Mexico; he owned it.

Episode 47 - Silvio Berlusconi: From Media Tycoon to Prime Minister

Silvio Berlusconi’s career is one of the most bizarre and controversial in modern history, a perfect fusion of media, business, and political power. This episode chronicles the audacious rise of the Italian magnate, who began his career as a real estate developer before building a media empire, Mediaset, that would break the state’s broadcasting monopoly. His television channels, filled with game shows and scantily clad women, were a cultural phenomenon that reshaped Italian society and made him a household name.
Having conquered the media, Berlusconi set his sights on the ultimate prize: political power. In the 1990s, he founded his own political party, Forza Italia, and used his television channels as a personal propaganda machine to become Prime Minister of Italy, a position he would hold three times. We investigate the unprecedented conflict of interest, where the country's richest man and largest media owner was also its political leader, a position he used to pass laws that directly benefited his business interests and protected him from numerous corruption charges. His reign was marked by populist rhetoric, international gaffes, and scandalous "bunga bunga" parties.
Silvio Berlusconi was a trailblazer, the original media-mogul-turned-populist-leader, providing a blueprint that others would later follow. His story is a chilling look at what happens when the lines between media, money, and the state are completely erased. He didn't just report on the news in Italy; he was the news.

Episode 48 - The Thomson Family: The Quiet Information Barons

While figures like Murdoch and Berlusconi courted the spotlight, the Thomson family of Canada quietly built one of the world's most powerful and least-known media empires. This episode tells the story of a dynasty that represents a different model of media power: less about noisy editorials and more about owning the indispensable data that makes the world run. We begin with Roy Thomson, who started with a single radio station and built a massive newspaper empire with a simple, profit-driven philosophy: "I buy newspapers to make money to buy more newspapers to make more money."
We then follow the family's brilliant strategic pivot under his son, Kenneth Thomson. Recognizing the decline of print, he sold off most of the newspapers, including the prestigious Times of London, and reinvested the proceeds into the unglamorous but wildly profitable world of specialized financial and legal information. This culminated in the 2008 acquisition of Reuters, creating the global information powerhouse Thomson Reuters. Their business wasn't about influencing the masses, but about selling high-priced, mission-critical data to professionals.
The story of the Thomson family is a lesson in quiet, long-term, dynastic power. They are the information barons, the invisible billionaires who profit from the data flowing beneath the surface of the global economy. Their power lies not in being the loudest voice in the room, but in owning the room itself.

Episode 49 - Conrad Black: The Press Lord Who Fell from Grace

Conrad Black was a media mogul cast in the old mold: flamboyant, intellectual, and imperious, a man who saw himself as a great historical figure. This episode chronicles the dramatic rise and spectacular fall of the Canadian-born press lord. We chart the construction of his company, Hollinger International, which at its peak was the third-largest newspaper empire in the English-speaking world, owning titles like Britain's Daily Telegraph, the Chicago Sun-Times, and the Jerusalem Post.
We explore Black's larger-than-life persona, his lavish lifestyle, and his entry into the British aristocracy as Lord Black of Crossharbour. But beneath the surface of the respectable press baron, a massive fraud was taking place. We unravel the complex scheme orchestrated by Black and his associates to loot millions of dollars from their own company through a series of bogus "non-compete" payments. The scandal broke, and the man who had hobnobbed with prime ministers and presidents found himself facing a U.S. federal investigation.
The episode culminates in his dramatic trial and conviction on charges of fraud and obstruction of justice, which resulted in a prison sentence and a humiliating fall from the global elite. Conrad Black's story is a modern tragedy of hubris and greed. It serves as a stark reminder that a powerful empire is no defense when the law finally comes knocking.