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Mark Robichaux

Cable Cowboy: John Malone and the Rise of the Modern Cable Business Paperback – March 23, 2005

by Mark Robichaux (Author)

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An inside look at a cable titan and his industry
John Malone, hailed as one of the great unsung heroes of our age by some and reviled by others as a ruthless robber baron, is revealed as a bit of both in Cable Cowboy. For more than twenty-five years, Malone has dominated the cable television industry, shaping the world of entertainment and communications, first with his cable company TCI and later with Liberty Media. Written with Malone's unprecedented cooperation, the engaging narrative brings this controversial capitalist and businessman to life. Cable Cowboy is at once a penetrating portrait of Malone's complex persona, and a captivating history of the cable TV industry. Told in a lively style with exclusive details, the book shows how an unassuming copper strand started as a backwoods antenna service and became the digital nervous system of the U.S., an evolution that gave U.S. consumers the fastest route to the Internet. Cable Cowboy reveals the forces that propelled this pioneer to such great heights, and captures the immovable conviction and quicksilver mind that have defined John Malone throughout his career.

Print length

336 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Wiley
Publication date

March 23, 2005
Dimensions

6.1 x 0.98 x 9 inches
ISBN-10

047170637X
ISBN-13

978-0471706373
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Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

Praise for CABLE COWBOY

"Cable Cowboy is a first-rate work by a first-rate reporter—excellent, original research on a topic that deserves it."
—Bryan Burrough, coauthor of Barbarians at the Gate

"With skill and precision, author Mark Robichaux paints a portrait of a man who is both fox and lamb, cunningly ruthless and surprisingly genuine. . . . We get to watch a man who plays chess against opponents who merely play checkers. And we get a really good read."
—Ken Auletta, author of Media Man: Ted Turner's Improbable Empire and Three Blind Mice: How the TV Networks Lost Their Way

"John Malone's remarkable climb [is] a tale worthy of a great cinematic Western. For the first time, we get a sharp picture of the man behind the mogul, an unflinching portrait of one of the business world's sharpest dealmakers. I dare you to put it down."
—Tom King, author of The Operator: David Geffen Builds, Buys, and Sells the New Hollywood

"Robichaux has provided a smart assessment of the cable industry through the wild narrative of John Malone . . . and turned it into a tale that manages to be both colorful and informative."
—Walter Isaacson, President and CEO of the Aspen Institute, former chairman of CNN, and author of Benjamin Franklin: An American Life

"A terrific saga of American enterprise—how lonely wires on windswept hillsides were stretched and spun into the Information Superhighway—as seen through the remarkable career of cable television's greatest entrepreneur."
—David Von Drehle, author of Triangle: The Fire That Changed America

From the Back Cover

Praise for CABLE COWBOY

"Cable Cowboy is a first-rate work by a first-rate reporter—excellent, original research on a topic that deserves it."
—Bryan Burrough, coauthor of Barbarians at the Gate

"With skill and precision, author Mark Robichaux paints a portrait of a man who is both fox and lamb, cunningly ruthless and surprisingly genuine. . . . We get to watch a man who plays chess against opponents who merely play checkers. And we get a really good read."
—Ken Auletta, author of Media Man: Ted Turner's Improbable Empire and Three Blind Mice: How the TV Networks Lost Their Way

"John Malone's remarkable climb [is] a tale worthy of a great cinematic Western. For the first time, we get a sharp picture of the man behind the mogul, an unflinching portrait of one of the business world's sharpest dealmakers. I dare you to put it down."
—Tom King, author of The Operator: David Geffen Builds, Buys, and Sells the New Hollywood

"Robichaux has provided a smart assessment of the cable industry through the wild narrative of John Malone . . . and turned it into a tale that manages to be both colorful and informative."
—Walter Isaacson, President and CEO of the Aspen Institute, former chairman of CNN, and author of Benjamin Franklin: An American Life

"A terrific saga of American enterprise—how lonely wires on windswept hillsides were stretched and spun into the Information Superhighway—as seen through the remarkable career of cable television's greatest entrepreneur."
—David Von Drehle, author of Triangle: The Fire That Changed America

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Wiley; 1st edition (March 23, 2005)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 336 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 047170637X
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0471706373
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.16 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.1 x 0.98 x 9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #717,000 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #131 in Media & Communications Industry (Books)
- #1,985 in Business Professional's Biographies
- #2,327 in Communication Skills

Customer Reviews:
4.5 324 ratings

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Mark Robichaux

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Mark Robichaux is a journalist and author of “Cable Cowboy,” about John Malone and the rise of the modern cable-TV business. He spent more than a decade as a reporter for The Wall Street Journal before becoming Content Director for Broadcasting & Cable and Multichannel News magazines. He later served as head of internal communications at Brunswick, a global critical issues firm. A Cajun from Louisiana, he began his career as a reporter at the Miami Herald, and his work has since appeared in various national magazines and newspapers.

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KC

Every Successful Entrepreneur MUST Read Cable Cowboy - Brilliant. Page Turner

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 24, 2023

Verified Purchase

If you think you know what ingredients are needed to be a successful entrepreneur and you haven't read Cable Cowboy, then you likely don't know what ingredients are needed to be a successful entrepreneur. Robichaux's wild ride of a book takes you to places that actually do seem like the Wild West, but are scenes playing out in board rooms and backrooms and in living rooms and shared workspaces all over the world. John Malone is more than a genius business leader, he is a true entrepreneurial pioneer who blazed new territory and imagined the impossible then realized his ideas before the rules were written that could have slowed him down.

Not only are there lessons to be learned and habits of mind worthy of emulating revealed in this book, it's exceptionally well written. Robichaux spent half his career at the Wall Street Journal following Malone and covering the cable industry. He knows this subject inside and out and he peppers the story with insider lore and characters out of a southern gothic novel. Everyone has an angle. Prospectors will kill for a piece of the action and Malone seems to know all the cards to play at just the right time. I couldn't put it down and I burst out laughing at the absurdity of how wild and untamed both the budding industry had to be navigated and how wild and untamed so many of the characters in this story were.

A refreshing tale of entrepreneurial daring and dealing that has enormous relevancy today for anyone trying to break through to the other side of a territory that doesn't yet exist. Malone shows us that frontiers will always exists. Robichaux shows how one man saw it before anyone else, assembled a crew smart enough and crazy enough to go there, and 50 years later, still rules the space. Bravo.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Amir

Great learning about the cable industry and John Malone

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 18, 2012

Verified Purchase

Fascinating story about the birth of an industry and how few determined people can create a change (an industry) against the odds and mighty opponents.

I found the description of the many struggles of John Malone and Bob Magness as they built Tele-Communications Inc. (TCI) to a dominant cable company an unforgettable story. It is a story of a rancher (Magness) who sold is cattle to "climb on towers and wire homes", and of John Malone a financial and business visionary who saved the company from bankruptcy (some will say multiple time) and led it to its powerful position.

I like the author ability to both describes in technical details the early days of the first cable systems and the personalities of the industry visionaries as they fight against many challenges (regulatory, financial and personal).

This book might be more important today (2012) than it was when released in 2005, as the industry is losing some of its dominance. The few broadcasting companies that were undefeated semi-monopoly only 30 years ago were slowly overtaken by the young cable guys as described in this book. Today some of these guys and the mighty cable industry are facing tremendous challenges (cable video subscription had its first negative year), other players are taking prominent position as leaders in the media distribution industry, and once "hooked" clients are debating about "cutting the cord".

The author neither analyzes the industry nor judge its ways. However, it is telling the story of risk taking people with a vision to create a product against all odds.

One might find that the key lesson in this book is that it is not only a company, a technology or a unique position that creates tremendous success, it is also (some will remove the word "also") the people, the captains of change. Read the book and you will have the opportunity to learn about one of these captains, John Malone.

Amir Avitzur
Author of "Why do we sell low and buy high? The guide you must read BEFORE you invest"

2 people found this helpful

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aefortier

Great book, perhaps not in the best Kindle format

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on December 11, 2017

Verified Purchase

This book provides an incredibly clear and well written insight into the early cable world. It's a world built by alliances and deals that still exist to this day. Cable Cowboy provides a great context into the cable world that we look at today. Net neutrality, media mergers, and cable deals can be better understood by those who read this book and understand the true underpinnings of the industry that it's all built on.

As far as being a kindle book goes, the margins and spacing are a little off. I think that this would be better read as a printed book. Nothing was so distracting that I couldn't read it, though.

5 people found this helpful

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Sir Lancelot

Tour de Force

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 15, 2013

Verified Purchase

The book is a hit, period! As a keen observer of the business of media, I believe Cable Cowboy is the most thorough chronicling of the rise of one of the most important media segments of our time. This story of the genesis and evolution of cable-TV resonates especially because of its telling through a focus on a truly riveting figure, John Malone. Brilliant and ruthless by turns, he is capture as more than just a cartoon, one-dimensional figure. In other words, the author has greatly distanced himself from the approach that most journalists have taken in reporting on Malone. Robichaux wrote a timeless book, and its enduring relevancy is borne out by Malone's continuing presence in today's business headlines. I'd recommend this book to any and all who appreciate (or should appreciate) the power of the media business.

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G. W. Lisman

Inside the Cable Industry

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 13, 2021

Verified Purchase

Great book if you like a business book with lots of details. The writer around a lot on the timeline, which was a little confusing.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 2, 2013

Verified Purchase

The Outsider: Eight Unconventional CEO's… included John Malone as one of the "Unconventional CEO's" It hit the highlights of Malone's career. The Cable Cowboy went into a lot more detail. I was impressed by his management style and his ability to grow through partnerships and acquisitions. The number of "deals" that he went though was so numerous that I had to go back and reconstruct the threads. It would have been interesting to view a process flow of the deals and interactions.

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Top reviews from other countries

JM

Great read.

Reviewed in Canada 🇨🇦 on February 15, 2018

Verified Purchase

I couldn't put this book down. What a story! John Malone had an incredible, if not, the best run in wealth generation when this book was written. This book keeps you wanting to learn Malone's next move and flip the pages.

kerry murphy

drivel

Reviewed in Australia 🇦🇺 on January 1, 2015

Verified Purchase

The book is about a great man with a great story. All he needs is someone to write it, day Robet

Gary David Jordan

Joan Malone and Liberty Global are an amazing Power House paving the way for Cable services unmatched ...

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on November 17, 2015

Verified Purchase

Joan Malone and Liberty Global are an amazing Power House paving the way for Cable services unmatched by satelite, ADSL, DSL or wireless. Liberty Global will change the way we use the Internet!