Bob Johnson, founder of Black Entertainment Television (BET), reflects on how the cable industry successfully overcame entrenched broadcaster and telephone company opposition through satellite technology and legal victories.
0:00 / 0:23exact quote · 23.3s
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“Technology is a hard thing to keep tied down, and as satellites launched, and you could beam signals across the entire country, and aggregate huge audiences via cable, over time, the argument for more content, free choice, more diversity of content, particularly, Won the argument with a couple of court cases”
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More from Robert "Bob" Johnson
AssertionSupported
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Disclosure
Bob Johnson: BET's pitch was adapted directly from an elderly channel proposal
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What-if
Johnson would have accepted 20 percent equity to secure Malone's capital
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Insight
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Disclosure
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Insight
Johnson: BET faced criticism because it was the only Black network
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