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Comcasted: How Ralph and Brian Roberts Took Over America's TV, One Deal at a Time
 
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Comcasted: How Ralph and Brian Roberts Took Over America's TV, One Deal at a Time [Hardcover]

Joseph N. DiStefano (Author)
2.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)

Price: $24.95 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
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Book Description

March 2005
If you're wondering who or what is next on Comcast's "to-do" list--stay tuned. Be sure to take this eye-opening, rare look inside an American corporate dynasty that began as a small franchise in Tupelo, Mississippi, and grew to become the nation's biggest cable TV company and fastest-growing Internet provider.

With the tenacious investigative skills and gusto of the seasoned reporter, Joseph N. DiStefano has written a must-read history of this vital industry and its principal player, as well as the unauthorized biography of Comcast's founder, Ralph Roberts, and his son and successor, Brian.

Though rivals like Fox News owner and satellite TV baron Rupert Murdoch continue to nip at its heels, though consumer discontent simmers, Comcast, with allies in small-town city halls and Washington, D.C., as well as powerful companies like Microsoft, continues to exert influence over Hollywood, Madison Avenue, and every TV viewer. We are, indeed, all COMCASTed.


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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Philadelphia Inquirer business reporter DiStefano strikes a hard-hitting tone in his profile of Comcast cable kings Ralph L. Roberts and son Brian. The nation's top merchant of TV news, sports, movies and pornography, Comcast has attempted to take over some of America's largest companies over the last 20 years, and has made some powerful friends along the way. The elder Roberts is a captivating, forceful, self-invented personality, and DiStefano briskly traces his rise, including his marriage to socialite Suzanne Fleisher, which blended her family connections and wealth with his aggressive business ability. The author charts Comcast's major business forays, like the purchases of stakes in QVC, a merger with AT&T Broadband and the unsuccessful $66 billion bid by Brian Roberts in 2004 to take over Disney. Although DiStefano addresses the media's criticism of Brian's debacle (Business Week headlined with "Brian Blew the Big One"), the younger Roberts eventually emerges as an equally capable and even more compelling figure than his father, someone who "relentlessly pushed for a place in the company even as his father tried to warn him off." DiStefano possesses an unflinching eye for detail, and the book offers many sharp, colorful anecdotes centered on such financial heavyweights as Bill Gates, Rupert Murdoch and Barry Diller. (Apr.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About the Author

JOSEPH N. DISTEFANO is an award-winning business reporter for the Philadelphia Inquirer. He lives in Wilmington, Delaware.

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 207 pages
  • Publisher: Camino Books; First Edition edition (March 2005)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0940159821
  • ISBN-13: 978-0940159822
  • Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.8 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,320,468 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Average Customer Review
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16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Comcasted Aren't We All?, March 8, 2005
By 
Book Ender (Philadelphia, PA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Comcasted: How Ralph and Brian Roberts Took Over America's TV, One Deal at a Time (Hardcover)
I just read this book because I was mad at Comcast--long story. While I didn't find it brimming with "dirt" I did find it a quick, interesting read and gave me some of the answers to my questions--why this giant has not been felled by the government...it's all in the message. The Robertses are very clever about how their media messages are presented and swallowed. If you're looking for a pure rant, you won't find satisfaction in this book. If you're looking for a sublimely damning look inside the company that pretty much controls how we watch tv and how much we pay for it, you'll enjoy this book.
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5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars One man's vendetta against Comcast, December 8, 2009
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This review is from: Comcasted: How Ralph and Brian Roberts Took Over America's TV, One Deal at a Time (Hardcover)
One man's vendetta against Comcast, Comcasted is the single worst book I have every read about any industry. It is poorly researched, does not provide any meaningful analysis and is quite clearly an attempt to discredit Comcast and its founders, the Roberts family. To make matters worse DiStefano has a strange urge to regularly mention the religious background of Comcast-related people, to the extent that I started to wonder whether what his primary motives were. In the end DiStefano's amateur attempt to discredit Comcast only discredited one person, DiStefano. This is certainly a book to miss and if you are truly interested in the cable industry rather read "Cable Cowboys". To be clear, I have no connection to Comcast and no reason to think favorably about the company and/or its founders. I quite simply strongly believe the book is absolute rubbish.
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