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The CEO Show Interview
Robert Reiss talks with...
Robert L. Johnson
Founder of BET and RLJ Companies
Robert L. Johnson is an American business magnate, chairman vision show on cable serving African-Americans? It was simply
and founder of the RLJ Companies, and founder of television a transmission system. You needed content to put on it, but it
network Black Entertainment Television (BET). In 2001, John- was not totally new. It wasn’t innovative.
son became the first African American billionaire, and the first It was just another technological platform to get content from
black person to be listed on the Forbes list of the world’s wealth- producers, in the case of television to viewers, like radio to lis-
iest people. teners, or magazine to readers, so the concept was there. What
Robert Reiss: How do you know that an idea is a great idea? was missing was using this technology to reach that audience.
Robert L. Johnson: The way I looked at it is, if it was something So to me, it was just a matter of time. Either I was going to do
that I believed in, truly thought that it was needed, if there was it or somebody else is going to do it. There was no way the idea
a void for it, it was probably a good idea, and depending on would stay under wraps for long.
how big the idea was, it could be a great idea.
RR: Is that an emotional feeling or an observational reason? RR: What is your proudest accomplishment over your incredible
RLJ: It’s a combination of both. You can’t start a business with- lifetime so far?
out being emotional about it. You have to embrace a business RJR: The thing I’m most proud of is that I have personally
the way you’d almost raise and embrace your children. You’ve created more African-American multi-millionaires than any-
got to want to have them and you’ve got to want to take care of body else in this country. It’s not so much the number that I’m
them and you’ve got to want to nurture them till they grow. It’s proudest of, though, but the fact that I gave them a chance to
the same way with investing and growing a business. prove what they could do if they had someone who would trust
RR: A good analogy. them and give them the resources to do it. And they succeeded!
RJR: That’s the emotional side of it; it was like that when I
started BET. I knew that there was a need for a cable channel to RR: Any final advice to entrepreneurs?
serve African-Americans. The reason I knew there was a need, RJR: Believe in yourself. It starts there. If you believe in your-
was because there was a magazine called Ebony that was serving self and you can convey that enthusiasm to either investors or
African-American readers. There was also black radio playing talented people who want to come work with you, and bring
black music that black folks wanted to listen to. So why not a tele- them in as your full partners - that means full disclosure about
everything and full economic opportunity to rise with you as the
company rises - that will be your trigger to success. ?
*Reprinted with permission of The CEO Forum, Volume ll, Issue 2
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