Original Broadcaster Captioning (Enhanced). Treat it as a searchable index of what was broadcast, not a quotation record.
00:00:00ALL THIS AND EVEN, YOU KNOW,
00:00:02CONSPIRACY THEORIES ABOUT A LAB
00:00:04LEAK THAT PRODUCED, YOU KNOW,
00:00:06THAT MAY HAVE IT AGAIN ALSO TRUE
00:00:10BUT YOU KNOW AND I'M NOT QUITE
00:00:13SURE LYME DISEASE BECAME THE
00:00:14SORT OF FOCUS OF OF OF THESE
00:00:19VARIOUS CONCERNS.
00:00:21BUT YOU KNOW, WE EVENTUALLY WILL
00:00:25MAYBE EVENTUALLY I THINK THINK SO. AND I THINK NOW THAT, YOU KNOW,
00:00:29LYME DISEASE AND A NUMBER OF OTHER INSECT BORNE DISEASES, AH,
00:00:33WITH CLIMATE CHANGE BECOMING MORE AND MORE PREVALENT AND
00:00:36RECOGNIZABLE, I SUSPECT WE'LL SEE MORE INTEREST AND MORE
00:00:39EFFORT AGAINST A NUMBER OF THEM. GOOD. ALL RIGHT.
00:00:41WELL, I THINK THAT'S GREAT PLACE TO STOP.
00:00:45PLEASE DO BUY THE BOOK. READ THE BOOK. I 100%.
00:00:48IT'S IT'S DEFINITELY WORTH A READ.
00:00:51THANK YOU SO MUCH, TOM, FOR BRINGING YOUR KNOWLEDGE AND YOUR ERUDITION TO ENLIGHTEN US
00:00:57TONIGHT. THANK YOU ALL.
00:01:00THANK YOUAND THANK YOU FOR DOINS
00:01:19EVENT TODAY. MY NAME IS BEATRICE HOSPITAL.
00:01:23I WORK AT THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS NATIONAL LIBRARY SERVICES FOR THE BLIND
00:01:26EMPOWERING DISABLED.
00:01:27I WELCOME ALL OF YOU HERE TO THE
00:01:302026 NATIONAL BOOK FESTIVAL.
00:01:34DAVID RUBENSTEIN IS THE CO-FOUNDER AND CO-CHAIR,
00:01:37CHAIRMAN OF THE CARLYLE GROUP.
00:01:38MR. RUBINSTEIN'S LATEST BOOK,
00:01:41INSIDE THE OWNERS BOX
00:01:43CONVERSATIONS ON POWER AND
00:01:46LEADERSHIP IN SPORTS IS FEATURED AT THE 2026 NATIONAL BOOK
00:01:50FESTIVAL. MR. RUBINSTEIN IS A RECIPIENT OF
00:01:53THE PRESIDENTIAL MEDAL OF FREEDOM AND CHAIRMAN OF MANY
00:01:57EDUCATIONAL AND NONPROFIT BOARDS.
00:01:59HE'S AN ORIGINAL SIGNER OF THE
00:02:02GIVING THE GIVING PLEDGE AND THE
00:02:04HOST OF THE DAVID REMY STEIN SHOW.
00:02:08BLOOMBERG WEALTH WITH DAVID BRONSTEIN, LONGEVITY WITH DAVID
00:02:12RUBINSTEIN AND ICONIC AMERICA.
00:02:15OUR SYMBOLS AND STORIES WITH DAVID RUBINSTEIN.
00:02:19MODERATOR KEVIN BROWN IS THE
00:02:21TELEVISION PLAY BY PLAY ANNOUNCER FOR THE BALTIMORE
00:02:25ORIOLES ON THE MID-ATLANTIC
00:02:27SPORTS NETWORK AND HAS SAID AND
00:02:31A PLAY BY PLAY ANNOUNCER ON ESPN.
00:02:33PLEASE WELCOME TO THE STAGE AND LET'S ENJOY THE SHOW. THANK YOU. MORNING.
00:02:39HEY, THANK YOU.
00:02:43THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE TODAY. THANK YOU.
00:02:46I KNOW IT'S NOT TERRIBLY EARLY, BUT THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE A LITTLE BIT EARLIER. WE ARE BUSY TONIGHT.
00:02:50THE ORIOLES LOOK FOR A SERIES WIN AGAINST THE RAYS AT 705.
00:02:56SO. SO THANK YOU ALL FOR COMING.
00:02:59AND THANK YOU TO BEATRICE AND EVERYONE WITH THE FESTIVAL.
00:03:03IF WE COULD GIVE THEM A ROUND OF APPLAUSE AS WELL FOR THIS EVENT,
00:03:08BECAUSE. THE BOOK, AS BEATRICE SAID,
00:03:11INSIDE THE OWNER'S BOX CONVERSATIONS ON POWER AND
00:03:15LEADERSHIP IN SPORTS. SHE GAVE QUITE A FEW OF YOUR
00:03:19CREDENTIALS THERE. YOU'RE ALSO A CHAIRMAN, A
00:03:21TRUSTEE, AN EMERITUS TRUSTEE, A DIRECTOR, A MEMBER OF OTHER
00:03:25ORGANIZATIONS. YOU'RE THE CONTROL PERSON OF THE ORIOLES.
00:03:28SO, OF COURSE, YOU HAVE THE TIME
00:03:30TO WRITE ANOTHER BOOK, WHICH IS
00:03:33YOUR SEVENTH, I BELIEVE, RIGHT. SO TWO QUESTIONS TO START.
00:03:36FIRST OF ALL, WHY USE WHAT IS
00:03:39YOUR, I ASSUME, LIMITED FREE TIME TO WRITE A BOOK AND THEN
00:03:42THIS PARTICULAR SUBJECT, WHY WRITE A BOOK ON THIS SUBJECT?
00:03:46WELL, I HAVE A NUMBER OF YEARS
00:03:49AGO, I DECIDED I WOULD LIKE TO START WRITING BOOKS. I LOVE READING BOOKS.
00:03:52I IT'S BEEN A MAJOR PART OF MY LIFE SINCE I GOT MY FIRST
00:03:57LIBRARY CARD AT THE AGE OF SIX IN BALTIMORE. AND I WOULD CHECK OUT IF YOU
00:04:01COULD CHECK OUT AT THE AGE OF SIX, 12 BUCKS A WEEK AT THE
00:04:06LIBRARY. LIBRARY. AND I WOULD CHECK THEM OUT AND READ THEM THE SAME DAY.
00:04:09AND THEN I HAD TO WAIT A WEEK TO GET MORE BOOKS. I JUST LOVE READING.
00:04:13AND ONE OF THE PLEASURES OF LIFE IS READING.
00:04:15BUT EVENTUALLY I CONCLUDED A NUMBER OF YEARS AGO, MAYBE I
00:04:19COULD TRY TO WRITE SOME BOOKS AND I CAME UP WITH THIS
00:04:23TECHNIQUE OF KIND OF WRITING A PART OF THE BOOK AND THEN
00:04:26INTERVIEWING PEOPLE FOR THE BOOK AS WELL. SO IN HIS BOOK, I INTERVIEWED A
00:04:30NUMBER OF OTHER OWNERS OF SPORTS
00:04:32TEAMS AND THE THEORY BEHIND THE
00:04:34BOOK IS THERE AREN'T THAT MANY
00:04:37BOOKS ON SPORTS OWNERS. THERE ARE A LOT OF BOOKS ON ON ATHLETES, AS THERE SHOULD BE.
00:04:41OWNERS ARE EITHER SHY ABOUT TALKING ABOUT THEMSELVES OR THEY
00:04:44DON'T REALLY GIVE THAT MANY INTERVIEWS. AND SO I THOUGHT I WOULD TALK
00:04:47ABOUT WHY I BOUGHT THE ORIOLES AND THEN INTERVIEW OTHER PEOPLE
00:04:51ABOUT WHY THEY BOUGHT THEIR SPORTS TEAMS AND HOW THEY OPERATE. I WANT TO GET TO THE FIRST PART
00:04:55OF THE BOOK LATER BECAUSE IT IS INTERESTING, BUT I FIND THE
00:04:58INTERVIEWS WITH THE OWNERS REALLY FASCINATING. AND YOU'RE WRITING A BOOK FOR
00:05:02PEOPLE WHO, BY AND LARGE, ARE NEVER GOING TO BE INVOLVED IN SPORTS OWNERSHIP OR BUYING
00:05:07SPORTS TEAMS. BUT ARE THERE THINGS THAT YOU
00:05:10THINK ANYONE HERE CAN LEARN?
00:05:12AND WITHOUT GIVING TOO MUCH AWAY
00:05:14FROM YOUR CONVERSE SESSIONS WITH THE OTHER OWNERS IN THE BOOK?
00:05:18THE MOST IMPORTANT THING THAT PEOPLE ARE PROBABLY SURPRISED ABOUT, AND I WOULD SAY I WASN'T
00:05:23SURPRISED, BUT I WAS REAFFIRMED IN MY VIEW, THE PEOPLE THAT BUY
00:05:27SPORTS TEAMS, THEY REALLY DON'T CARE ABOUT MAKING MONEY SO MUCH
00:05:29AS THEY DO ABOUT WINNING FOR THE
00:05:32LOCAL NEIGHBORHOOD OR LOCAL CITY.
00:05:35AND SO IT'S MUCH MORE IMPORTANT TO THE OWNERS THAT THEY ACTUALLY
00:05:39HAVE A CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM OR DO WELL THAN THEN FIGURE OUT WHAT
00:05:41THE BOTTOM LINE IS IN MY DAY TO
00:05:45DAY BUSINESS OF PRIVATE EQUITY. THEY ARE YOU FOCUS ON THE BOTTOM
00:05:49LINE ALL THE TIME. THAT'S YOUR MAIN FOCUS IS AND EVERYTHING IS WHAT THE EARNINGS
00:05:53ARE GOING TO BE AND WHAT THE EARNINGS ARE NEXT QUARTER. WHEREAS IN BASEBALL OR OTHER
00:05:56SPORTS TEAMS, YOU KNOW, YOU OBVIOUSLY DON'T WANT TO LOSE
00:05:59MONEY, BUT FOCUS ON THE FOCUS ON MAKING MONEY IS LESS IMPORTANT
00:06:04THAN IT IS IN PRIVATE EQUITY. OTHER PARTS OF THE BUSINESS WORLD.
00:06:06ARE THERE OTHER COMMONALITIES BEHIND THAT SORT OF SENSE OF
00:06:10CIVIC DUTY THAT YOU FOUND IN YOUR CONVERSATIONS WITH THE
00:06:13OWNERS AMONG DIFFERENT SPORTS? SURE. EVERYBODY FEELS THAT THEY HAVE
00:06:16AN OBLIGATION TO THE COMMUNITY. AND SO YOU BUY A TEAM. AND IN MY OWN CASE, I BOUGHT THE
00:06:21ORIOLES BECAUSE I WANTED.
00:06:25TO GIVE BACK TO BALTIMORE. I VIEWED IT AS A PHILANTHROPIC KIND OF ENDEAVOR BECAUSE I DIDN'T EXPECT TO MAKE A LOT OF MONEY ON IT OR IF ANY MONEY.
00:06:28BUT I REALLY WANTED TO GIVE BACK TO THE CITY THAT I'D GROWN UP IN.
00:06:31MY PARENTS GREW UP IN BALTIMORE. THEY WERE MARRIED THERE.
00:06:34THEY'RE BURIED THERE. I'M GOING TO BE BURIED THERE. AND I EXPECT THAT, YOU KNOW,
00:06:39IT'S A CITY THAT GAVE ME A PUBLIC EDUCATION AND I WANTED TO
00:06:41DO MORE FOR BALTIMORE THAN I HAD DONE. PROBABLY.
00:06:43I DID A LOT OF THINGS IN THE PHILANTHROPIC AREA IN THE WASHINGTON AREA, BUT NOT AS MUCH
00:06:47IN BALTIMORE. I MEAN, I'M ON THE BOARD OF JOHNS HOPKINS FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS AND GIVING MONEY THERE.
00:06:51BUT I HADN'T BEEN AS INVOLVED IN THE BALTIMORE PHILANTHROPIC
00:06:55COMMUNITY AS I HAD BEEN IN THE WASHINGTON ONE.
00:06:58YOU MENTIONED THE SECOND HALF OF THE BOOK IS CONVERSATIONS WITH OTHER OWNERS, THEIR OWNERS WITH
00:07:02LOCAL TIES HERE. TED LEONSIS, WHO OWNS THE WIZARDS, THE CAPITALS, THE
00:07:05MYSTICS, MICHELLE KANG OWNS THE WASHINGTON SPIRIT.
00:07:08THERE'S ALSO JIM CRANE, ROBERT KRAFT, JEFFREY LURIE, AMONG MANY
00:07:13OTHERS. WERE YOU SURPRISED AT HOW OPEN
00:07:17AND REVEALING SOME OF THE OWNERS WERE WHEN YOU OFFERED TO SIT
00:07:20DOWN WITH THEM OR ASSESS WHAT MANY OF THE OWNERS I INTERVIEWED
00:07:24ARE PEOPLE I'VE KNOWN BEFORE? NOT ALL OF THEM. AND BUT SOME OF THEM I KNOW.
00:07:28AND THEY OPENED UP A BIT. YOU KNOW, OWNERS ARE NOT PEOPLE THAT GIVE AS MANY INTERVIEWS AS
00:07:32MAYBE ATHLETES DO TO SOME EXTENT. AND SO SOME OF THEM ARE MORE SHY
00:07:36ABOUT SAYING THINGS, BUT GENERALLY, I THINK THEY WERE
00:07:38PRETTY OPEN ABOUT IT. AND I TOLD THEM IT WAS GOING TO BE IN A BOOK AND AND THEY HAD
00:07:42THE RIGHT TO LOOK AT THE INTERVIEW. AFTER I DID IT, I GAVE THEM THE
00:07:45TEXT OF IT AND THEY COULD LOOK AT IT AND THEY THOUGHT THEY SAID SOMETHING WRONG, THEY COULD EDIT IT OUT.
00:07:49BUT GENERALLY THEY DIDN'T DO THAT.
00:07:50DID ANYBODY TURN YOU DOWN?
00:07:54THERE ARE MANY PEOPLE WHO HAVE A
00:07:58TECHNIQUE OF SAYING NO BY NOT RESPONDING.
00:08:03SO BUT THE TECHNIQUE THAT PEOPLE OFTEN USE AND I GUESS I'VE USED
00:08:06THEM MYSELF, IS, OH, I NEVER GOT THE EMAIL. SORRY, I DIDN'T SEE IT.
00:08:10AND THEREFORE THEY CAN SAY THEY WOULD HAVE DONE IT, BUT ONLY
00:08:14THEY DIDN'T GET THE THEIR STAFF DIDN'T GIVE THEM THE INTERVIEW OR SOMETHING. DIDN'T GIVE THEM THE EMAIL.
00:08:17SO THERE ARE A NUMBER OF PEOPLE I WROTE TO WHO I NEVER HEARD FROM.
00:08:20WE ALL HAVE A SPAM FILTER, I
00:08:25SUPPOSE. YOU TALK TO SOME OTHER BASEBALL OWNERS OF THE BOOK, SOME FELLOW
00:08:30OWNERS IN THE AMERICAN LEAGUE AND THE NATIONAL LEAGUE.
00:08:32THE LEVEL OF COMPETITION AND YET THE LEVEL OF CAMARADERIE.
00:08:35I'M INTERESTED IN THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE OWNERS BECAUSE A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT OWN
00:08:39FRANCHISES, BUT THEY'RE 30 CONTROL PEOPLE.
00:08:42AND I'M SURE YOU KNEW SEVERAL OF THEM BEFOREHAND.
00:08:45YOU'D INTERVIEWED THEM ON YOUR SHOW AND IN OTHER PROGRAMS BEFOREHAND.
00:08:48NOW YOU ARE FRIENDLY, BUT YOU ARE COMPETING WITH THEM.
00:08:51WHAT IS THE BALANCE BETWEEN CAMARADERIE WHEN YOU'RE AT ALL
00:08:55THESE OWNERS MEETINGS AND COMPETITION, WHEN YOU'RE ALL TRYING TO WIN THE WORLD SERIES?
00:08:59IT'S LIKE ANYTHING IN LIFE AND IN THE BUSINESS WORLD, YOU YOU
00:09:02HAVE TRADE ASSOCIATIONS WHERE
00:09:05YOU ARE IN A TRADE ASSOCIATION WITH OTHER PEOPLE THAT ARE
00:09:07COMPETING WITH YOU IN THE PRIVATE EQUITY WORLD. WE HAVE LOTS OF ORGANIZATIONS
00:09:11THAT GET PRIVATE EQUITY PEOPLE TOGETHER. WHEN YOU'RE COMPETING WITH EACH
00:09:15OTHER, IT'S NOT QUITE THE SAME AS IN SPORTS, BUT I WOULD SAY
00:09:19THAT THE ATMOSPHERE IS PRETTY GOOD WHEN YOU HAVE THE LEAGUE
00:09:21MEETINGS, YOU HAVE 30 OWNERS AND NOBODY IS YELLING AT ANYBODY ELSE.
00:09:25MAYBE THEY IF THEY HAVE A DISAGREEMENT, THEY TEND TO DO IT BEHIND THE SCENES OR SO FORTH.
00:09:28BUT I THINK IT'S RELATIVELY COLLEGIAL NOW. I HAVEN'T LIVED THROUGH THE THE
00:09:32FIGHTS THAT THAT SOME OWNERS HAVE HAD OVER THE YEARS AND
00:09:35ABOUT MAJOR ISSUES. AND, YOU KNOW, I'LL SEE WHETHER
00:09:39WHETHER WE HAVE THAT IN THE FUTURE. BUT RIGHT NOW RELATIVELY
00:09:42COLLEGIAL AND PEOPLE SEEM TO BE FRIENDLY. BUT, YOU KNOW, I HAVEN'T WON THE WORLD SERIES YET, SO I'M NOT
00:09:46TAKING AWAY ANYTHING FROM ANYBODY YET.
00:09:48WHEN DID YOU REALLY STRONGLY
00:09:52CONSIDER GETTING INTO SPORTS OWNERSHIP AND HOW MANY
00:09:55OPPORTUNITIES OVER THE YEARS HAD YOU HAD TO TAKE?
00:09:58WELL, AS MY FIRM CARLYLE GREW
00:10:01AND I MADE MONEY, PEOPLE APPROACHED ME ABOUT BUYING SPORTS TEAMS.
00:10:05AND I SAID CONSISTENTLY, LOOK,
00:10:07IF I DO THAT, MY INVESTORS WILL SAY, YOU'RE NOT FOCUSED ON MONEY
00:10:11THAT WE'VE GIVEN YOU TO INVEST. SO I TURNED DOWN MANY
00:10:15OPPORTUNITIES THAT HAD BEFORE TO BUY SPORTS TEAMS.
00:10:17AND IN THIS AREA OR IN OTHER PARTS OF THE COUNTRY.
00:10:21BUT THEN WHEN I STEPPED BACK AS THE COACH OF CARLYLE, I HAD I
00:10:25MORE TIME TO BE ABLE TO THINK ABOUT IT. AND I DID THINK ABOUT IT.
00:10:28AND I ALSO REALIZED THAT I DIDN'T REALLY KNOW MUCH ABOUT BEING AN OWNER.
00:10:32AND SO I PROBABLY WOULD MAKE A LOT OF MISTAKES. BUT I DECIDED EVENTUALLY WHEN
00:10:35THIS OPPORTUNITY CAME ALONG, IF I BROUGHT SOME PEOPLE IN WHO KNEW MORE ABOUT OWNERSHIP OF
00:10:41SPORTS TEAMS THAN MAYBE I DID, I COULD. I CAN MAKE IT WORK. AND I LEARNED A LOT AND I'VE
00:10:44LEARNED HOW BAD I AM AT CERTAIN THINGS AND HOW I'M BETTER AT
00:10:47CERTAIN THINGS AND OTHER THINGS. BUT, YOU KNOW, IT'S A HUMBLING EXPERIENCE BECAUSE EVERY DAY YOU
00:10:51WIN OR LOSE MOST PARTS OF LIFE,
00:10:53YOU DON'T WIN OR LOSE EVERY DAY.
00:10:57AND YOU KNOW, YOU GO THROUGH LIFE AND SOMETHING BAD HAPPENS. YOU CAN BLAME SOMEBODY ELSE.
00:11:01BUT, YOU KNOW, IN BASEBALL, IT'S HARDER TO BLAME OTHER PEOPLE.
00:11:04YOU'VE GOT TO BLAME YOURSELF TO SOME EXTENT. I'M SURE THIS IS A QUESTION THAT
00:11:08HAS A LONG ANSWER. BUT ARE THERE A COUPLE OF
00:11:12SPECIFIC THINGS THAT HAVE STOOD OUT, THAT HAVE SURPRISED YOU THAT YOU'VE LEARNED IN YOUR TWO
00:11:16AND A HALF YEARS AS BEEN SURPRISED AND HOW MANY EIGHT
00:11:18YEAR OLDS WANT MY AUTOGRAPH OR MY SELFIE?
00:11:21I KEEP EXPLAIN MEANING TO THEM
00:11:23THAT I'M NOT A PLAYER. AND AS THEY CAN SEE AND I'M
00:11:27REALLY JUST NOT VALUABLE AND SO FORTH. BUT, YOU KNOW, RATHER THAN TRY
00:11:30TO PERSUADE THEM IN A VERY INTELLECTUAL WAY, I JUST EASIER TO SIGN IT.
00:11:34BUT THE PROBLEM IS THAT SOME OF YOU MAY NOT HAVE THIS EXPERIENCE. SIGNING A BASEBALL IS NOT THAT
00:11:37EASY BECAUSE IT'S CURVE AND AND,
00:11:40YOU KNOW, WHEN THEY TAUGHT
00:11:42CURSIVE WRITING IN BALTIMORE SCHOOLS, IT SEEMED TO BE ON THE
00:11:46DAYS THAT THEY WERE JEWISH HOLIDAYS. I WASN'T IN SCHOOL, SO I DIDN'T
00:11:50REALLY MY CURSIVE IS TERRIBLE. SO I JUST PRINTED OUT AND THEY
00:11:54KIND OF SAY, WELL, THAT'S YOUR HANDWRITING. I SAID, JUST PRINT IT. AND THEN I BECAUSE I'M TRAINED AS A LAWYER, I ALWAYS PUT THE
00:11:57DATE ON IT. SO.
00:11:59SO MY BASEBALL SIGNINGS ARE
00:12:02UNUSUAL, BUT, YOU KNOW, I DON'T WANT TO TELL PEOPLE THAT SIGNING
00:12:07CLOTHING THEY'RE WEARING IS A LITTLE UNBECOMING. BUT THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO HAVE SAYING THEY'RE WEARING SOMETHING.
00:12:11CAN YOU SIGN IT WHILE THEY'RE WEARING IT? AND WHAT I'M I DON'T GET AN ARGUMENT.
00:12:15SO I SAID, OKAY. BUT I MEAN, THAT'S, YOU KNOW,
00:12:17PEOPLE SPORTS FANS TAKE THIS THE
00:12:20SPORT VERY SERIOUSLY AND THAT'S GOOD.
00:12:22BUT I'VE BEEN ALSO SURPRISED AT HOW DEDICATED PEOPLE ARE.
00:12:26AND THERE ARE PEOPLE WHEN I FIRST GOT INVOLVED WHO TOLD ME THEY'VE BEEN SEASON TICKET
00:12:30HOLDERS FOR 50 YEARS, 50 YEARS,
00:12:33AND I STARTED INVITING THEM TO THE TO THE OWNERS SUITES AND SO FORTH, AND GETTING TO KNOW THESE
00:12:37PEOPLE BETTER. I'VE BEEN SURPRISED AT HOW IMPORTANT IT IS. AND I'LL SAY THIS ABOUT
00:12:41BALTIMORE. BALTIMORE, THE ORIOLES ARE MORE
00:12:44IMPORTANT TO BALTIMORE THAN THE BASEBALL TEAM IS TO MANY OTHER
00:12:47CITIES IN NEW YORK AND LOS ANGELES. THEY HAVE A LOT OF OTHER BIG THINGS GOING ON THERE.
00:12:51AND IF THE TEAMS DON'T WIN, IT'S NOT THE END OF THE EARTH.
00:12:55BUT IN BALTIMORE, BALTIMORE HAS
00:12:57LOST ITS BASKETBALL TEAM TO WASHINGTON, LOST ITS HOCKEY TEAM TO WASHINGTON.
00:13:03WE HAVE A FOOTBALL TEAM, BUT WE LOST ONE FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS. AND SO THE ORIOLES HAVE OF A
00:13:06HOLD ON THE CITY THAT MANY
00:13:08BASEBALL TEAMS PROBABLY DON'T HAVE ON THEIR OWN CITY OR ELSE
00:13:12DIDN'T HAVE BASEBALL FOR MANY YEARS. AS YOU PROBABLY KNOW, OR ELSE
00:13:15WHEN THEY'RE IN THE BASEMENT. PROFESSIONAL BASEBALL WAS BEING SET UP IN THE EARLY PART OF THE
00:13:1920TH CENTURY. THE ORIOLES HAD A TEAM IN THE PROFESSIONAL LEAGUE FOR JUST A COUPLE OF YEARS, AND THEN THEY
00:13:23DIDN'T HAVE ONE UNTIL 1954 AND ONE WHEN THEY BOUGHT THE TEAM
00:13:26THAT WAS CALLED THE ST LOUIS BROWNS. IT CAME TO BALTIMORE IN 1954 ON
00:13:29A PURCHASE PRICE WAS 2.2 MILLION PRETTY IN EXPENSIVE.
00:13:35YOU. UM, THIS IS A VERY INTERESTING TIME IN SPORTS OWNERSHIP AS
00:13:38WE'VE SEEN BY SOME OF THE RECENT SALES WHICH WHICH WE CAN GET INTO.
00:13:41BUT YOU HAVE A QUOTE IN THE BOOK WHICH YOU RELAY FROM JACK KENT
00:13:44COOK, WHICH HE TELLS TO JOHN STANTON, WHO RUNS THE MARINERS,
00:13:47WHERE HE SAID THE BEST WAY TO MAKE A SMALL FORTUNE IN SPORTS
00:13:50IS TO START WITH A LARGE ONE AND
00:13:52BUY A SPORTS TEAM, WHICH IS
00:13:55FUNNY, BUT IS PROBABLY NOT
00:13:57ACCURATE, ACCURATE ANYMORE. WHEN DO YOU THINK IT TURNED ONE?
00:14:00DO YOU THINK SPORTS OWNERSHIP IS A MORE PROFITABLE VENTURE?
00:14:05A VENTURE AND FRANCHISE VALUATION SPIKING REALLY STARTED
00:14:08TO TURN WELL, THINK ABOUT IT. WHEN THE NEW YORK YANKEES WERE
00:14:12BOUGHT BY CBS IN THE I GUESS IT
00:14:14WAS THE LATE SIXTIES, EARLY SEVENTIES.
00:14:18SO THEY PLAYED ABOUT 10 MILLION, $12 MILLION SPORT WHEN THEY WENT
00:14:20TO SELL IT IN 1972, THEY DIDN'T
00:14:23HAVE A LOT OF BUYERS. THE PERSON WHO BOUGHT IT WAS A
00:14:27PERSON NAMED GEORGE STEINBRENNER, AND NOBODY HAD EVER HEARD IT BEFORE.
00:14:30AND HE DIDN'T HAVE THE MONEY TO BUY IT. THE PURCHASE PRICE WAS 8.8
00:14:33MILLION, WHICH SEEMED LIKE A LOT AT THE TIME.
00:14:36HE ONLY HAD 250,000. SO HE PUT IN 250,000 AND HE HAD
00:14:40TO SYNDICATE THE REST. THE WEALTHIEST PEOPLE IN THE
00:14:43UNITED STATES WEREN'T BUYING SPORTS TEAMS IN THE 5060S AND SEVENTIES.
00:14:46IF YOU GO BACK AND LOOK AT THE SPORTS OWNERS OF MAJOR LEAGUE FOOTBALL OR MAJOR BASKETBALL OR
00:14:52OR BASEBALL TEAMS IN THE THIRTIES, FORTIES, FIFTIES OR
00:14:56SIXTIES, THERE ARE PEOPLE YOU NEVER HEARD OF BECAUSE THE WEALTHIEST PEOPLE DIDN'T SEE IT AS A PATH.
00:14:59THEY'RE MAKING GREATER MONEY AND THEY DIDN'T WANT THE AGGRAVATION OF DEALING WITH REPORTERS AND
00:15:03ALL THAT OTHER THING KIND OF STUFF THAT COMES ALONG WITH OWNERSHIP TODAY AMONG THE
00:15:07WEALTHIEST PEOPLE IN THE COUNTRY ARE BUYING SPORTS TEAMS. WE JUST SAW IN THE NEWSPAPER
00:15:11THAT JEFF BEZOS JUST PUT A LARGE INVESTMENT, I THINK
00:15:15$1,000,000,000, INTO A SOCCER TEAM IN ENGLAND AND KNOWS THAT'S
00:15:19RELATIVELY NEW, THAT THE WEALTHIEST PEOPLE IN THE COUNTRY WANT TO BUY SPORTS TEAMS.
00:15:22AND THE REASON IS THAT THEY'VE SEEN IT AS A PATH TO TO MAYBE
00:15:25NOT GREATER WEALTH, BUT THE PATH
00:15:28TO MORE VISIBILITY OR OR MORE PLEASURE IN LIFE, I SUPPOSE.
00:15:31BUT YOU SEE A LOT OF PEOPLE BUYING SPORTS TEAMS THAT NEVER WOULD HAVE THOUGHT OF IT BEFORE.
00:15:34AND I I'M SURPRISED ABOUT THAT. I LEARNED A LOT OF INTERESTING THINGS IN THE BOOK.
00:15:38THE STEINBRENNER NOTE I DID NOT REALIZE THAT'S THE MOST AMAZING THING.
00:15:42I LEARNED THAT HE PUT $250,000 IN AND ESSENTIALLY BECAME THE
00:15:46MOST NOTABLE OWNER IN SPORTS OVER HIS TIME. RIGHT.
00:15:48AND HE EVERYBODY ELSE WAS A LIMITED PARTNER AND ONE OF HIS
00:15:51LIMITED PARTNERS FAMOUSLY ONCE SAID THERE'S NOTHING SO LIMITED
00:15:55IN THIS WORLD AS BEING A LIMITED PARTNER WITH GEORGE STEINBRENNER.
00:15:58IT JUST IN THE PAST FEW MONTHS
00:16:01AND WEEKS, THE SEAHAWKS SOLD.
00:16:05THAT'S BEING CLOSED RIGHT NOW FOR A REPORTED 9.6 BILLION.
00:16:07THE LAKERS JUST REPORTED 12 AND
00:16:10A HALF BILLION DOLLAR SALE. THE TIMBERWOLVES MARK LORD JUST
00:16:12SOLD HIS STAKE IN A $4.5 BILLION SALE.
00:16:16VALUES ARE EXPLODING, VALUATIONS ARE EXPLODING.
00:16:18HOW HIGH CAN THIS GO?
00:16:22WELL, IT NEVER REALLY NO OF COURSE.
00:16:25AND WHENEVER YOU'RE IN A BUBBLE, YOU DON'T KNOW YOU'RE IN A BUBBLE TO IT BURST.
00:16:29SO WE'RE IN A BUBBLE. I DON'T KNOW IF WE'RE IN A BUBBLE OR NOT, BUT WHAT'S
00:16:32FEEDING THIS IS A COUPLE OF THINGS. ONE, IN THE OLD DAYS, THERE WERE
00:16:36THREE TELEVISION STATIONS OR NETWORKS IN THE UNITED STATES.
00:16:39NOW THERE'S AN INFINITE NUMBER OF CABLE CHANNELS. THEN THEY'RE STREAMING AND
00:16:43THERE'S INTERNATIONAL VIEWERS. NOW. AND THEN YOU ALSO HAVE BETTING,
00:16:47BETTING HAS, I THINK, INCREASED FOR BETTER OR WORSE, INTEREST IN
00:16:50THE SPORTS TEAMS. SO YOU'VE GOT BETTING AS A
00:16:54PHENOMENON, YOU'VE GOT STREAMING IS A PHENOMENON. AND MORE AND MORE INTERNATIONAL
00:16:58PARTICIPATION. AND SO IT USED TO BE BASEBALL WAS, LET'S SAY, A U.S. SPORT.
00:17:01NOW IT'S A SPORT AROUND THE WORLD. AND AS FOOTBALL'S TRYING TO BE
00:17:05INVESTED, WHAT IS NOW TRULY INTERNATIONAL SPORT.
00:17:07SO IT'S ALSO MORE AND MORE PEOPLE ON THE FACE OF THE EARTH.
00:17:11YOU'VE GOT 8 BILLION PLUS PEOPLE NOW, BUT THE BIGGEST CHANGE, I WOULD SAY, IS THAT THAT THERE
00:17:15ARE SO MANY MORE TEAMS AS WELL
00:17:17WHEN WHEN I WAS A BOY IN
00:17:19BALTIMORE, THERE WERE NO TEAMS
00:17:21IN MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL WEST OF
00:17:25MISSOURI, NOT UNTIL 1958 THROUGH THE GIANTS MOVED TO SAN FRANCISCO AND THE DODGERS MOVED
00:17:29TO L.A. AND NOW THERE ARE ROUGHLY THREE TIMES AS MANY A
00:17:34PROFESSIONAL SPORTS TEAMS IN THE FOUR BIG LEAGUES AS THERE WERE. LET'S SAY IN MY WAS GROWING UP
00:17:38JUST MUCH. THERE ARE MANY MORE TEAMS AND MORE AND MORE OPPORTUNITIES FOR
00:17:41OWNERSHIP THAN THERE WAS BEFORE YOU INTERVIEW.
00:17:44AS WE SAID, A NUMBER OF OWNERS IN THE BOOK AND YOU ASKED FOLKS
00:17:48HOW MUCH OF THEIR TIME THEY SPEND IN THEIR ROLE WITH THE
00:17:52TEAM CONTROL PERSON, GERMAN, ETC. SOME PEOPLE SAY MAYBE 10 TO
00:17:5515%, SOME PEOPLE IT'S ALL OVER. IT'S WHAT THEY DO. I ASK YOU THAT.
00:17:59HOW MUCH OF YOUR TIME HAS BECOME DEDICATED TO THE OR?
00:18:01AS WITH EVERYTHING ELSE THAT YOU DO, IT'S IT I HAVE A LOT OF
00:18:05OTHER THINGS I'M STILL DOING AND I SO I'M NOT THERE ARE OWNERS
00:18:08WHO HAVE NO OTHER DAY JOB AND
00:18:11THOSE OWNERS GO TO EVERY SINGLE GAME AND THEY ARE AND THEY
00:18:15BASICALLY DOING THE JOB OF ACTUALLY BEING A GENERAL MANAGER THEMSELVES.
00:18:17I'M STILL HAVE OTHER THINGS I'M
00:18:20DOING, SO I GO TO ENOUGH GAMES SO THAT I THINK I KNOW WHAT'S
00:18:24GOING ON. I'LL BE THERE TONIGHT WITH YOU,
00:18:25BUT I CAN'T GO TO EVERY GAME. BUT THERE'S NOBODY THAT'S
00:18:29DEMANDING ME TO GO TO EVERY GAME. AND WHEN I SHOW UP, I USED TO SHOW UP.
00:18:32THE FANS WERE HAPPY. NOW I DON'T KNOW IF THEY'RE AS HAPPY AS THEY USED TO BE. WE'LL SEE.
00:18:36I MEAN, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE USED TO
00:18:40APPLAUD WHEN I WAS WALKING DOWN THE AISLE. I'M NOT SURE I'M GOING TO BE SO HAPPY BECAUSE I HAVEN'T YET WON
00:18:43A CHAMPIONSHIP. YOU TALK ABOUT THE BEHIND THE
00:18:48SCENES OF YOUR WORK AND ACQUIRING THE ORIOLES, GETTING
00:18:51GROUPED TOGETHER. I DON'T WANT TO SPOIL EVERYTHING THAT'S IN THE BOOK, WHICH IS OUT NEXT MONTHS, SEPTEMBER 22ND.
00:18:56BUT YOU WRITE ABOUT HOW YOU ALMOST DROPPED OUT OF THE ORIOLES DEAL AT SOME POINT.
00:19:00I WROTE ABOUT THIS. YOU KNOW, EVERYBODY EVERY
00:19:03BUSINESS DEAL HAS ITS LIFE AND DEATH'S PART OF THE CYCLE.
00:19:06AND EVERY BUSINESS YOU ALL BEEN INVOLVED IN. AT SOME POINT, PEOPLE SAY THIS
00:19:10DEAL IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN OR THEY WALK AWAY AND THEY GET MAD. AND I DIDN'T KNOW THAT HAPPENED
00:19:14IN SPORTS AS WELL. BUT IT DOES HAPPEN IN SPORTS. PEOPLE WALK AWAY FROM DEALS IN
00:19:17THIS PARTICULAR CASE, WE WERE NEGOTIATING A DEAL AND WE HAD,
00:19:22YOU KNOW, 20 PEOPLE ON A ZOOM CALL. I THINK IT WAS DURING COVID
00:19:26RIGHT AROUND THAT TIME. SO EVERYTHING WAS ON A ZOOM CALL.
00:19:28AND AT ONE POINT I FELT THAT THE
00:19:30OTHER SIDE, I WAS SAYING THINGS THAT I THOUGHT WERE INAPPROPRIATE.
00:19:34SO I JUST SAID, FORGET IT, I'M OUT OF HERE. HUNG UP.
00:19:38AND EVERYBODY WAS SAYING, WHAT DOES HE MEAN? HE HUNG UP AND I WALKED AWAY
00:19:41FROM THE DEAL AND I WALK AWAY FOR ABOUT THREE WEEKS OR SO.
00:19:43I THOUGHT THAT THEY HAD INSULTED US ABOUT CERTAIN THINGS AND WE WALKED AWAY.
00:19:47BUT THEN, LIKE MANY THINGS IN LIFE, YOU FIGURE OUT HOW TO GET BACK TOGETHER AND PUT THINGS
00:19:51TOGETHER. AND SO WE DID. BUT IT DID INFORM ON THE PART
00:19:55THIS ONCE IN A SIGNIFICANT WAY. YEAH. DID YOU THINK YOU WERE ONE
00:19:59MICROPHONE? YEAH, IT'S ON.
00:20:02LET ME SAY USE A HANDHELD AND
00:20:06THAT ANNOUNCER SHOULD KNOW HOW
00:20:09TO DOES THIS WORK?
00:20:13I DON'T ALWAYS FIX THE MIKES. I JUST TALK. OKAY. ALL RIGHT.
00:20:17BUT THANK YOU ALL FOR HAVING A BACKUP. DID YOU THINK DURING THE THREE
00:20:21WEEKS THIS ACTUALLY MIGHT NOT GO
00:20:23THROUGH OR WAS IT THE RIGHT, I THOUGHT, TO DEAL WITH WHAT WOULD
00:20:27DIE AND BECAUSE WE HAD A BIG GAP
00:20:31IN CERTAIN ISSUES. AND SO, YEAH, BUT DEALS I'M USED TO THE FACT THAT DEALS FALL
00:20:35APART AND SOMETIMES PEOPLE FIND A WAY TO PUT THEM BACK TOGETHER AGAIN.
00:20:39USUALLY THE LAWYERS AND THE INVESTMENT BANKERS FIND A WAY TO PUT IT BACK TOGETHER AGAIN
00:20:42BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT GOING TO GET PAID IF A DEAL DOESN'T GET DONE.
00:20:45BUT SO THEY USUALLY FIND A WAY TO PUT IT BACK TOGETHER AGAIN. IN THIS PARTICULAR CASE, WE
00:20:49FOUND A WAY TO COME BACK, BUT FOR THREE WEEKS OR SO IT WAS
00:20:52THAT WHEN PEOPLE HEAR OWNER,
00:20:55THEY HAVE THIS SENSE, AT LEAST I
00:20:57DID GROWING UP OF ONE PERSON, ONE PERSON WRITES ALL THE
00:21:01CHECKS, ONE MAY BE LARGER THAN LIFE FIGURE ONE MAN, ONE WOMAN
00:21:05WHO RUNS EVERYTHING THAT THAT
00:21:07SEEMS TO HAVE CHANGED AS YOU ILLUMINATE IN THE BOOK.
00:21:10THERE ARE MANY LIMITED PARTNERS. THERE ARE MANY MINORITY OWNERS.
00:21:13HOW MUCH DO YOU THINK THAT HAS CHANGED IN SPORTS OWNERSHIP, AND
00:21:16IS THAT THE WAY YOU SEE FUTURES SALES TRENDING? IT'S DIFFERENT.
00:21:20THE OLD DAYS, ONE PERSON TYPICALLY HAD ENOUGH MONEY TO BUY A TEAM.
00:21:23TODAY, THE PRICE WAS SO HIGH
00:21:25THAT VERY FEW PEOPLE CAN AFFORD TO DO THIS THEMSELVES.
00:21:29YOU'VE JUST MADE REFERENCE TO THE SEAHAWKS, FOR EXAMPLE.
00:21:33THE SEAHAWKS ARE GOING TO BE SOLD FOR $9.6 BILLION.
00:21:36THERE AREN'T THAT MANY PEOPLE THAT CAN WRITE CHECKS FOR $9.6 BILLION.
00:21:40AND YOU HAVE LIMITS ON HOW MUCH DEBT YOU CAN PUT ONTO THESE TEAMS. SO YOU HAVE TO SYNDICATE
00:21:45TYPICALLY THESE DEALS. IT'S VERY RARE, RARE TODAY TO
00:21:48HAVE ONE PERSON WRITE A CHECK
00:21:50FOR A TEAM ALL BY HIMSELF OR HERSELF. AND RARELY HAPPENS.
00:21:53YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH CAL RIPKEN JR
00:21:56IN A FEW WEEKS IN NEW YORK. HE'S PART OF THE OWNERSHIP GROUP.
00:22:00MICHAEL ERIC GETTY OF AREAS AS WELL. THERE'S A LARGE NUMBER OF
00:22:04PARTNERS THAT ARE IN THIS WITH YOU. CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT
00:22:07THE PROCESS OF PUTTING TOGETHER
00:22:08A GROUP AND HOW THAT PROCESS GOT STARTED WITH YOU AND MIKE AND
00:22:12THEN HOW YOU FOUND OTHER FOLKS TO COME ON AFTER THAT?
00:22:15WELL, IN BUYING THE ORIOLES, I
00:22:17DIDN'T HONESTLY THINK THAT IT
00:22:20WOULD HAPPEN, SO I DIDN'T FOCUS ON WHO WOULD BE IN EXACTLY BUT
00:22:23WHEN IT BECAME CLEAR THAT IT WAS PROBABLY GOING TO HAPPEN, I
00:22:27BEGAN TO TALK TO PEOPLE WHO ARE FROM BALTIMORE, WHO LIVE IN
00:22:31BALTIMORE, OR WHO HAVE ANY INTEREST IN THE ORIOLES, AND I THOUGHT IT'D BE BETTER TO HAVE A
00:22:35LOCAL OWNERSHIP FOCUSED TEAM OF PEOPLE AS OWNERS.
00:22:39I ALSO FOCUSED ON BRINGING IN SOMEBODY WHO COULD BE MY PARTNER
00:22:43AND EVENTUALLY MY SUCCESSOR, WHO WAS SOMEBODY WHO KNEW BASEBALL
00:22:46COULD AFFORD TO BE A PARTNER AND REALLY CARED ABOUT IT.
00:22:49AND MIKE GARRITY, AS A PERSON, I COULD DO THAT.
00:22:52BUT WE HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO INVESTED IN THE TEAM, LIKE GRANT
00:22:56HILL, GRANT HILL, HIS FATHER
00:22:58GREW UP IN BALTIMORE, AND HE WAS
00:23:01A BIG ORIOLES SPANISH. HIS FATHER HAD BEEN ON THE
00:23:03ORIOLES BOARD MANY YEARS AGO. ASK HIM TO COME IN.
00:23:07FORMER MAYOR OF BALTIMORE, WHO I GREW UP WITH, CURT SCHMOKE, ASKED HIM TO COME IN.
00:23:11BILL MILLER, WHO WAS A VERY PROMINENT BUSINESSMAN IN BALTIMORE.
00:23:15I ASKED HIM TO COME IN, SO I WANTED TO HAVE A BALTIMORE LOCATION TO IT.
00:23:19AND MAKE SURE PEOPLE REALIZED IT WASN'T AN OUT OF TOWN GROUP THAT
00:23:21WAS COMING TO BUY THE ORIOLES. YOU'RE OBVIOUSLY INVOLVED DAILY,
00:23:25WEEKLY, MIKE, AS WELL. HOW INVOLVED ARE FOLKS LIKE
00:23:28GRANT AND CURT AND BILL? HOW OFTEN DO YOU SPEAK WITH THEM
00:23:31ABOUT THE ORIOLES AND HOW OFTEN ARE THEY INTERESTED IN WHAT'S GOING ON?
00:23:35WELL, WE HAVE MEETINGS FROM TIME TO TIME. WE HAD ONE YESTERDAY AND WITH
00:23:39SOME OF THE MAJOR INVESTORS IN BALTIMORE, AND WE SPENT FOUR OR
00:23:425 HOURS GOING THROUGH HOW THE ORIOLES ARE GOING, THE PLUSES
00:23:45AND MINUSES AND, YOU KNOW, IT'S FRUSTRATING WHAT THE TEAM ISN'T
00:23:48DOING AS WELL AS I WOULD LIKE, THOUGH, YOU KNOW, USUALLY YOU
00:23:52HAVE TO YOU HAVE TO ADDRESS THOSE PROBLEMS AND IN THE NORMAL
00:23:54BUSINESS WORLD, I OPERATE IN AND
00:23:56ALL YOU MAKE, YOU MAKE CHANGES, YOU DO THINGS TO IMPROVE THINGS.
00:23:59AND SOMETIMES THEY WORK OUT AND NOT EVERY DEAL WORKS OUT.
00:24:02BASEBALLS IS CHALLENGING AND YOU KNOW, IT CAN BE FRUSTRATING.
00:24:05AND MY HAIR WAS COMPLETELY DARK IN ZERO COLOR WHEN I GOT INTO THIS.
00:24:09WHAT ARE SOME OF THE
00:24:11MISCONCEPTIONS YOU THINK FANS HAVE ABOUT SPORTS OWNERSHIP AND
00:24:14SOME OF THE THINGS THAT MAYBE YOU WANT TO ILLUMINATE IN THE BOOK?
00:24:18WHY THE PRINCIPAL MISCONCEPTION IS THAT IF YOU SPEND MORE MONEY,
00:24:22YOU'RE GOING TO ABSOLUTELY WIN. SO WE'VE TRIPLED THE PAYROLL OF
00:24:26THE ORIOLES, BUT WE HAVEN'T DONE AS WELL AS THE TEAM I INHERITED.
00:24:30I BOUGHT A TEAM THAT HAD BEEN IN FIRST PLACE AND I MANAGED TO TAKE THEM THE LAST PLACE.
00:24:34IT'S NOT EASY TO DO. HOPEFULLY WE'LL BE OUT OF THAT SOMETIME SOON.
00:24:38BUT YOU KNOW, AND WE'VE TRIPLED THE SALARIES, THE SALARY THAT WE HAVE.
00:24:43SO NOW SPENDING MONEY ISN'T THE ONLY THING THAT MAKES TEAMS WORK
00:24:47BETTER. I WISH IT WERE THEN. OBVIOUSLY WE'D BE MORE SUCCESSFUL THAN WE HAVE BEEN
00:24:51TODAY, BUT THAT'S THE PERCEPTION. I THINK THAT IF YOU JUST SPEND
00:24:55MORE MONEY, THE TEAM WILL ACTUALLY GET BETTER.
00:24:57YOU WRITE IN THE BOOK AND PEOPLE HAVE SAID THIS BASEBALL TEAMS
00:25:01DON'T ALWAYS MAKE AN OPERATING PROFIT.
00:25:04I DON'T KNOW IF YOU CAN BREAK DOWN ALL OF THE FINANCES NOW, BUT CAN YOU GIVE A SENSE OF WHY
00:25:08THAT IS? AND AND HOW THAT WORKS ON MOST
00:25:11SPORTS TEAMS IN MOST LEAGUES
00:25:14DON'T MAKE OPERATING PROFITS. I THINK THE NFL NOW IS SO
00:25:18PROFITABLE BECAUSE THE TV
00:25:20CONTRACTS ARE SO RICH THAT THEY PROBABLY ALL EVERY TEAM PROBABLY
00:25:23MAKES AN OPERATING PROFIT GENERALLY IN THE SPORTS WORLD.
00:25:27HISTORICALLY, YOU MAKE YOUR MONEY WHEN YOU SELL THE TEAM.
00:25:31MANY TEAMS HAVE NOT BEEN PROFITABLE, BUT WHEN THEY WERE SOLD, THE OWNER MADE A FAIR
00:25:34AMOUNT OF MONEY OUT OF IT. SO THAT'S LARGELY THE CASE IN
00:25:38BASEBALL. VERY FEW TEAMS MAKE OPERATING PROFITS OR ELSE DON'T MAKE AN
00:25:41OPERATING PROFIT. AND THE REASON IS THAT TO BE COMPETITIVE, PEOPLE HIRE MORE
00:25:45PLAYERS AND HIGHER SALARIES. AND ULTIMATELY YOU HOPE
00:25:49EVENTUALLY IT'LL PRODUCE A TEAM THAT'LL BE OF SUCCESSFUL AND THEN MORE VALUABLE.
00:25:53ONE OF THE REALLY INTERESTING CONVERSATIONS YOU HAVE IN THE BOOK IS FROM MICHELLE KING. YES.
00:25:57INVOLVED HERE WITH THE WASHINGTON SPIRIT RUNS TWO OTHER
00:26:00SOCCER TEAMS NATIONALLY.
00:26:03THIS IS A REALLY INTERESTING
00:26:05QUOTE FROM HER BECAUSE SHE OWNS THREE SOCCER TEAMS.
00:26:08SHE'S INVESTED IN AN ORGANIZATION CALLED JUST WOMEN'S
00:26:11SPORTS AND CLEATS FOR FEMALE PLAYERS. AND SHE SAID, I WANT TO
00:26:15PROFESSIONALIZE WOMEN'S SPORTS. I DON'T WANT PEOPLE TO THINK
00:26:18THAT SOMEHOW WOMEN'S SPORTS IS A CHARITY OR A CORPORATE D-I PROJECT.
00:26:22THIS IS A BUSINESS THAT IS GOING TO BE PROFITABLE, BREAK EVEN
00:26:24PROFITABLE WITH ENTERPRISE VALUES.
00:26:26WHAT DID YOU TAKE AWAY FROM YOUR CONVERSATION? MICHELLE SO WHEN I WAS A BOY,
00:26:32THERE WAS NO TITLE NINE AND TITLE NINE CAME IN TO THE
00:26:36GOVERNMENT UNDER I THINK IT WAS PASSED UNDER PRESIDENT NIXON,
00:26:39BUT NOT REALLY IMPLEMENTED UNTIL REALLY UNDER JIMMY CARTER.
00:26:43AND TITLE NINE ESSENTIALLY SAID THAT WOMEN HAVE TO HAVE IN
00:26:45COLLEGE SPORTS ESSENTIALLY THE SAME OPPORTUNITIES AS MEN, MORE OR LESS.
00:26:49AND THAT WAS A REVOLUTION IN
00:26:51CHANGING THE PERCEPTION OF WOMEN
00:26:54AS ATHLETES AND A REVOLUTION IN
00:26:56GIVING WOMEN ACCESS TO SPORTS.
00:26:58SO TODAY, EVERY COLLEGE OR OR
00:27:02COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY, AS YOU KNOW, WOMEN'S SPORTS TEAMS AND
00:27:04MOST MEN'S SPORTS TEAMS, THAT WAS NOT THE CASE WHEN I WENT TO COLLEGE.
00:27:08THIS DIDN'T HAPPEN.
00:27:10THE SAME IS TRUE IN PROFESSIONAL SPORTS. THERE WERE NO WOMEN'S
00:27:14PROFESSIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUES, SOCCER LEAGUES, SOFTBALL
00:27:17LEAGUES, BASKETBALL LEAGUES WHEN I WAS A YOUTH.
00:27:20TODAY, THERE ARE AND THEY'RE ACTUALLY GROWING IN POPULARITY.
00:27:23FOR THOSE WHO PEOPLE DON'T KNOW, MICHELLE KING IS A AN IMMIGRANT
00:27:27FROM KOREA WHO CAME TO THE
00:27:29UNITED STATES CONVINCING HER
00:27:32FATHER TO GIVE HER THE MONEY TO THAT HE HAD SAVED FOR HER EDUCATION IN IN KOREA.
00:27:37AND FOR HER WEDDING BECAUSE HE WAS GOING TO MARRY HER OFF.
00:27:42SHE USED IT FOR THE FIRST YEAR OF COLLEGE TUITION AT UNIVERSITY. GOGO.
00:27:45LATER, SHE EARNED MONEY TO GRADUATE UNIVERSITY. COUGHLIN THEN WENT TO YALE
00:27:49SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT, AND THEN SHE BUILT A COMPANY IN THE WASHINGTON AREA, MADE A FAIR
00:27:53AMOUNT OF MONEY WHEN SHE SOLD IT TO ACCENTURE, AND THEN SHE STARTED GETTING MORE DEEPLY
00:27:56INVOLVED IN THE SPORTS WORLD. AND SHE PREVIOUSLY BOUGHT AND THEN GOT MORE ACTIVELY INVOLVED
00:28:00IN THE WASHINGTON WOMEN'S SOCCER TEAM.
00:28:04AND SHE'S, YOU KNOW, A REAL FORCE IN THE WOMEN'S SPORTS WORLD.
00:28:06WHERE DO YOU SEE OR WHERE DO YOU
00:28:08HEAR ABOUT THE GROWTH IN PROFESSIONAL SPORTS?
00:28:12YOU MENTIONED SOME OF THOSE LEAGUES, OBVIOUSLY, MICHELLE, SOMEBODY WHO'S INVESTED DEEPLY
00:28:16IN WOMEN'S SPORTS. AND WHILE YOU'RE ONLY THE OWNER OF THE ORIOLES, I'M SURE YOU GET
00:28:20APPROACHED BY FOLKS. I'M SURE YOU GET APPROACHED BY LEAGUES AND GET INTEREST.
00:28:23SO WHERE DO YOU THINK IF THERE IS A NEXT FRONTIER, IF THERE'S A
00:28:27NEXT REVOLUTION, WE'RE GOING IN PROFESSIONAL SPORTS, IN SPORTS,
00:28:31GENERALLY IN SPORTS OWNERSHIP, SPORTS OWNERSHIP.
00:28:35WELL, I THINK INCREASINGLY AMERICAN BUSINESS PEOPLE WILL
00:28:37BUY SPORTS FRANCHISES OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES.
00:28:41NOW, THAT HAD NOT HAPPENED VERY
00:28:43MUCH UNTIL THE GLAZER FAMILY
00:28:45BOUGHT MANCHESTER UNITED ENGLISH
00:28:48PREMIER SOCCER LEAGUE MANY YEARS AGO.
00:28:50THAT TURNED OUT TO BE FABULOUSLY SUCCESSFUL FOR THEM AND OTHER
00:28:54AMERICANS HAVE NOW BOUGHT A LOT OF ENGLISH PREMIER SOCCER LEAGUES. I THINK INCREASINGLY YOU'RE
00:28:57GOING TO SEE AMERICANS BUYING SPORTS TEAMS OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES.
00:29:02THEY'RE BASEBALL TEAMS OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES CAN BE PURCHASED.
00:29:05SOCCER TEAMS, BASKETBALL TEAMS, FOR EXAMPLE, THE NBA IS SETTING
00:29:09UP A EUROPEAN NBA EQUIVALENT AND
00:29:13I THINK MANY OF THE OWNERS THERE WILL BE LOCAL, BUT THEY'LL BE SOME AMERICANS INVESTING IN AS WELL.
00:29:16SO I THINK AMERICANS BUSINESSPEOPLE INTERESTED IN THIS WILL GET INVOLVED.
00:29:22BUT ALSO ONE OF THE OTHER PHENOMENON THAT'S OCCURRED IS THAT SMALLER INVESTORS, YOU
00:29:27CAN'T PUT IN $500 MILLION OR $1,000,000,000, WHATEVER IT
00:29:30MIGHT BE, TO BUY A TEAM THERE. THEY'RE GOING INTO PARTNERSHIPS
00:29:34WITH GROUPS THAT ARE SYNDICATING THESE INTERESTS. INCREASINGLY, YOU SEE THESE
00:29:37PARTNERSHIPS COMING ALONG AND SMALLER INVESTORS CAN COME IN.
00:29:41AND SO AND TO BUY OWNERSHIPS AND, YOU KNOW, THEY MIGHT MAKE A PROFIT.
00:29:45BUT I THINK THEY WANT TO BE ABLE TO SAY THEY'RE AN OWNER AND THEY LIKE THE THRILL OF THAT.
00:29:48WERE YOU SURPRISED AT HOW MUCH
00:29:50OR HOW LITTLE THE FOLKS YOU SPOKE TO IN THE BOOK SAY THEY'RE
00:29:56INVOLVED IN SPORTING DECISIONS? RIGHT. SOMETIMES YOU HEAR ABOUT, OH,
00:30:00FANS OF CERTAIN TEAMS WILL SAY OWNERS TOO OFTEN INVOLVED IN
00:30:04BASKETBALL DECISIONS OR FOOTBALL DECISIONS AND WHATNOT, WHILE
00:30:07OWNERS ARE CRITICIZED WHEN THE
00:30:09TEAMS LOSE, WHEN THE TEAMS WIN, PEOPLE DON'T SAY THE OWNERS ARE
00:30:12TOO INVOLVED USUALLY, BUT AS A
00:30:14GENERAL RULE OF THUMB, IF YOU
00:30:17DON'T CAN'T STAND CRITICISM, DON'T BUY A SPORTS TEAM BECAUSE
00:30:21NO SPORTS OWNER, WHOEVER THE SPORTS OWNER IS, IS GOING TO BE
00:30:24APPRAISED ALL THE TIME BY FANS. IT'S JUST NOT GOING TO HAPPEN.
00:30:28SO IF YOU HAVE A THIN SKIN JUST STAY OUT OF THE SPORTS WORLD.
00:30:31IT'S JUST AS AN OWNER, GO AS A FAN, IT'S IT'S PART OF THE GAME.
00:30:35AND, YOU KNOW, THE PRIVATE EQUITY WORLD, YOU KNOW, YOU
00:30:39DON'T GET THIS KIND OF CRITICISM AS MUCH FROM YOUR INVESTORS AS YOU MIGHT GET FROM YOUR FANS OR
00:30:43YOUR PARTNERS IN THE SPORTS WORLD. IF YOU DON'T DO WELL.
00:30:46AND IT IS INTERESTING PHENOMENON THAT SOME OF THESE TEAMS ARE
00:30:49RELATIVELY SMALL BUSINESSES. CARLISLE MIGHT BUY A COMPANY
00:30:52THAT HAS ONE OR TWO OR $3 BILLION OF REVENUE, AND NOBODY
00:30:55PAYS THAT MUCH ATTENTION TO IT. THE ORIOLES THEMSELVES ARE MODEST, RELATIVELY SPEAKING,
00:31:00TERMS OF REVENUE, A COUPLE HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS. IT'S RELATIVELY MODEST.
00:31:03IS THE BUSINESS WORLD, BUT IT GETS ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF ATTENTION.
00:31:07AND YOU HAVE TO RECOGNIZE THAT YOU'RE GOING TO GET THIS ATTENTION. AND IF YOU CAN'T STAND THE
00:31:11ATTENTION AND THE CRITICISM, YOU'RE SHOULD GO DO SOMETHING ELSE.
00:31:15ONE OF THE FOLKS YOU SPEAK TO STEADILY ANSWERS WHO YOU SAID
00:31:17YOU ACTUALLY AT SOME POINT WERE INTERESTED IN BUYING THE ORIOLES WITH.
00:31:20AGAIN, I DON'T WANT TO SPOIL EVERYTHING IN THE BOOK, BUT
00:31:24TED'S WAS CERTAINLY WEALTHY ENOUGH TO HAVE THE MONEY TO BUY
00:31:27A SPORTS TEAM WHEN HE INVESTED IN THE WIZARDS, IN CAPITALS AND SUCH.
00:31:30BUT A LOT OF HIS WEALTH HAS COME FROM THE SPORTS WORLD AND HIS
00:31:33INVESTMENT IN MONUMENTAL SPORTS AND ENTERTAINMENT IS THAT
00:31:37SOMETHING THAT CAN HAPPEN NOW OR IS THE BUY IN PRICE.
00:31:40DO YOU THINK TOO HIGH TO GET THESE FRANCHISES, THE BUYING
00:31:43PRICE, THE PURCHASE PRICE OF ENTRY IS VERY HIGH THESE DAYS
00:31:47BECAUSE THERE'S BEEN ACCELERATION BEYOND WHAT ANYBODY WOULD HAVE EXPECTED.
00:31:51AND AS I SAID, THE ORIOLES LOOK AT WHAT HAPPENED. THE ORIOLES ORIOLES WERE CAME TO
00:31:55WALK TO BALTIMORE IN 1954 TO PURCHASE PRICE OF 2.2 MILLION.
00:31:59THEY WERE SOLD TO EDWARD BENNETT
00:32:01WILLIAMS IN, I THINK 1981 OR 82
00:32:05FOR A PURCHASE PRICE OF ABOUT 12 AND A HALF MILLION, 12 MILLION.
00:32:09THEN IT WAS SOLD A FEW YEARS LATER TO ELI JACOBS FOR 75 MILLION.
00:32:13THEN IT WENT BANKRUPT AND THEN
00:32:15IT WAS BOUGHT OUT OF BANKRUPTCY
00:32:17BY THE THE ANGELOS FAMILY, A NET
00:32:21PRICE OF, LET'S SAY, PROBABLY $155 MILLION.
00:32:25I PAID 1.7 BILLION.
00:32:28SO, YOU KNOW, 2.2 MILLION TO 1.7 BILLION ANNOUNCEMENT A YEAR.
00:32:32BUT THE PRICES HAVE ACCELERATED. VERY FEW SPORTS TO SEE THE
00:32:35PRICES GOING DOWN. AND AS YOU SEE THE LATEST DEALS
00:32:39THAT ARE BEING DONE, THE LAKERS FOR 12 AND A HALF BILLION
00:32:41DOLLARS, THE SEAHAWKS FOR 9.6 BILLION, THAT CELTICS FOR 6.1 BILLION.
00:32:45PRICES ARE PRETTY HIGH. AND I SUSPECT YOU PROBABLY CONTINUE.
00:32:49NOW, AGAIN, YOU ALWAYS DON'T KNOW YOU'RE IN A BUBBLE TOO THE
00:32:52BUBBLE BURST BUT IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE THERE'S A BUBBLE SO MUCH IN
00:32:55SPORTS PRICES BECAUSE THE FANS ARE STILL SUBSCRIBING TO
00:33:00SERVICES WHERE THEY CAN THEN WATCH THESE THESE GAMES.
00:33:03I YOU KNOW, EVERYTHING HAS UPS
00:33:05AND DOWNS, BUT I SUSPECT IF SPORTS IS THINK ABOUT THIS OF
00:33:09THE TELEVISION SHOWS ON ON THE
00:33:11UNITED STATES IN ANY GIVEN YEAR,
00:33:1695% OF THE OF THESE MOST POPULAR
00:33:18SHOWS ARE LIVE SPORTING EVENTS 95%.
00:33:22THAT WASN'T THE CASE WHEN I WAS GROWING UP. AND SO INCREASINGLY, ADVERTISERS
00:33:26RECOGNIZE THAT IF YOU WANT TO GET FANS EYEBALLS, YOU SUBSCRIBE
00:33:30TO OR ADVERTISE ON A LIVE SPORTING EVENT AND YOU KNOW, THE
00:33:34SIZE OF THE AUDIENCES ARE STAGGERING WHEN YOU LOOK AT IT. HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF PEOPLE
00:33:38IN THE UNITED STATES ARE WATCHING SPORTING EVENTS.
00:33:40THE WORLD SERIES, TOO. AND I KNOW MAYBE WE HAD A LITTLE
00:33:43BIT OF A STRANGE WORLD SERIES BECAUSE YOU HAD A TEAM FROM CANADA IN TORONTO, AND THEN YOU HAD THE DODGERS WHO HAD THIS
00:33:48INCREDIBLE SUPERSTAR, SHOHEI OHTANI, FROM JAPAN, YOSHINOBU
00:33:51YAMAMOTO FROM JAPAN, ROOKIE SASAKI FROM JAPAN.
00:33:53WERE YOU STRUCK BY HOW WIDE THE
00:33:56INTERNATIONAL AUDIENCE WAS FOR THAT WORLD SERIES AND HOW IT'S
00:34:00CONTINUED TO GROW EVEN IN YOUR COUPLE OF YEARS IN BASEBALL?
00:34:02WELL, MR. OHTANI IS, YOU KNOW,
00:34:05AN UNUSUAL PHENOMENON.
00:34:07HE'S A JAPANESE CITIZEN WHO
00:34:10BECAME A STAR IN THE UNITED STATES IN BASEBALL. NOW, THERE HAVE BEEN OTHER
00:34:14JAPANESE STARS IN AMERICAN LEAGUE BASEBALL, BUT NOT IN I
00:34:17CALL THE ROCK STAR WORLD. AND SO HE GOT A CONTRACT THAT
00:34:21WAS THE BIGGEST IN THE HISTORY OF BASEBALL AT THE TIME, $702 MILLION.
00:34:24ESSENTIALLY, HE A CONTRACT THAT NOBODY COULD BELIEVE ANYBODY
00:34:28WOULD GET A CONTRACT THAT BIG BABE RUTH HAD A STRUGGLE WITH
00:34:32THE YANKEES WHEN THEY WOULDN'T PAY HIM $100,000 A YEAR.
00:34:35AND, YOU KNOW, FAMOUSLY PEOPLE
00:34:37SAID, YOU'RE MAKING TO BABE RUTH AND HE FINALLY GOT $100,000.
00:34:41YOU'RE MAKING MORE IN THE PRESENT THAN THE PRESENT UNITED STATES MAKING. AND HE SAID, WELL, I HAD A BETTER YEAR THAN HE DID.
00:34:47SO, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU'RE MAKING $700 MILLION IN A CONTRACT AND
00:34:50THERE'S BEEN SOME THAT HAVE EXCEEDED THAT NOW, YOU KNOW,
00:34:53IT'S A DIFFERENT WORLD THAN IT WAS IN THE CASE OF THE QUESTION YOU ASK.
00:34:57JAPAN IS A PLACE WHERE BASEBALL
00:34:59IS MORE IMPORTANT TO SOME EXTENT
00:35:01THAN MAYBE IT IS IN THE UNITED STATES. ALTHOUGH WE INVENTED BASEBALL AS
00:35:05WE CLAIM TO HAVE INVENTED IT.
00:35:07AND JAPAN HAS AS A SUPPORT AND
00:35:11LOVE OF BASEBALL THAT TRANSCENDS ALMOST WHAT YOU SEE IN THIS COUNTRY.
00:35:15AND SO OHTANI IS IS A COMBINATION ROCK STAR RELIGIOUS
00:35:19FIGURE, CULTURAL LEADER, PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE KIND OF THING.
00:35:23AND EVERYBODY WATCHES HIM.
00:35:25SO THE JAPANESE, THE JAPANESE
00:35:27FLY OVER MANY, MANY PEOPLE TO WATCH THE THE LOS ANGELES
00:35:31DODGERS GAMES AND IN LOS ANGELES AND ONE OF THE BIGGEST SOURCES
00:35:34OF PROFIT FOR THE DODGERS IS SELLING MERCHANDISE IN JAPAN.
00:35:38SO THE.
00:35:42MERCHANDISE WITH OHTANI IS LOGO ONE OR SOMETHING IS JUST A GIGANTIC SELLER.
00:35:44SO I'M NOT SURE I'M I'M SURPRISED IT HAPPENED.
00:35:48I'M GLAD IT'S HAPPENED. I HOPE WE HAVE MORE INTERNATIONAL PLAYERS LIKE THAT AND OUR LARGE NUMBER OF THE
00:35:52INTERNATIONAL PLAYERS WE HAVE NOW ARE ARE NOT FROM JAPAN AND OR TAIWAN OR KOREA, BUT
00:35:57INCREASINGLY IT'S GOING TO HAPPEN. MOST OF THE INTERNATIONAL PLAYERS NOW THAT WE HAVE WERE PROBABLY FROM THE CARIBBEAN.
00:36:01WE MENTIONED EARLIER THIS IS THE
00:36:04SEVENTH BOOK THAT YOU'VE WRITTEN, RIGHT. IN A RELATIVELY SHORT PERIOD OF TIME.
00:36:08SO JUST DRAWING BACK FROM SPORTS OWNERSHIP A LITTLE BIT TO YOU AS
00:36:12AN AUTHOR IN THE BOOK FESTIVAL AS A WHOLE, SOMETHING YOU'VE BEEN INVOLVED WITH QUITE A BIT.
00:36:16YOU TALK ABOUT WHEN YOU WERE SIX, GETTING 12 BOOKS A WEEK OUT
00:36:19OF THE LIBRARY. WHERE DID YOUR DESIRE TO LEARN
00:36:24AND TO READ AND ULTIMATELY TO WRITE? AND THEN THE CURIOSITY LEADS TO
00:36:28THESE CONVERSATIONS OF THE BOOK. WHERE DID THAT ALL STEM FROM? WELL, MY PARENTS WERE NOT
00:36:31COLLEGE GRADUATES OR EVEN HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATES.
00:36:34MY FATHER DROPPED OUT OF HIGH SCHOOL TO GO INTO WORLD WAR TWO.
00:36:36I CAME. HE MET MY MOTHER. SHE DROPPED OUT OF HIGH SCHOOL
00:36:40TO MARRY HIM, AND MORE THAN NINE MONTHS LATER, I WAS BORN.
00:36:43AND I WAS THE ONLY CHILD.
00:36:46AND YOU KNOW, MY FATHER WORKED IN THE POST OFFICE.
00:36:48HE MADE SEVEN, EIGHT, $9,000 A YEAR AT WHEN I WAS GROWING UP.
00:36:52SO, YOU KNOW, I JUST DECIDED IF
00:36:55I WANTED TO KIND OF MAKE SOMETHING OF MYSELF, I HAD TO LEARN MORE.
00:36:59AND TO DO THAT, I USED BOOKS AND
00:37:01I JUST READ A LOT OF BOOKS AND IT'S SOLID AS A WAY TO KIND OF
00:37:05ADVANCE MYSELF. AND SO I STILL READ AN ENORMOUS NUMBER OF BOOKS ON THIS YEAR.
00:37:09I, I DON'T SAY THAT AS WAY OF
00:37:12BRAGGING BECAUSE I, I FORCE MYSELF TO READ SOME BOOKS BECAUSE HAVE A LOT OF SHOWS
00:37:15WHERE I'M INTERVIEWING AUTHORS. SO YOU HAVE TO READ THE BOOK.
00:37:19BUT I PROBABLY WILL READ 150 BUCKS A YEAR. NOW, I DO THAT BECAUSE I'M
00:37:22READING BOOKS ON SUBJECTS I KNOW REASONABLY WELL BIOGRAPHY, POLITICS, BUSINESS.
00:37:26IF I HAD TO READ PHYSICS TEXTBOOKS OR CHEMISTRY
00:37:30TEXTBOOKS, I WOULDN'T GET THROUGH THEM. BUT I AS I DO READ A LOT AND I ENJOY IT.
00:37:32AND I JUST HOPE MY EYESIGHT WILL CONTINUE TO BE THERE FOR ME TO
00:37:36KEEP DOING THIS, BECAUSE AT A CERTAIN AGE, YOU KNOW, YOU MAY NOT BE ABLE TO DO EVERYTHING YOU
00:37:40CAN DO, BUT I'M I'M JUST KIND OF GOING TO DO THE FINISH LINE.
00:37:44I HAD READ THAT YOU HAD SAID YOUR GOAL WAS 100 BUCKS A YEAR, BUT YOU'VE UPPED IT.
00:37:48WELL, BECAUSE I HAVE A NEW SHOW ON C-SPAN THAT THAT REQUIRES ME
00:37:52TO INTERVIEW. PEOPLE ARE GREAT AUTHORS AND
00:37:56IT'S CALLED AMERICA'S BOOK CLUB. AND I HAVE TO INTERVIEW A LOT
00:38:00MORE PEOPLE THAN I USED TO ABOUT BOOKS. BUT LOOK, YOU CAN'T YOU CAN'T
00:38:04READ TOO MANY BOOKS. AND, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE GREAT
00:38:07THINGS ABOUT THIS FESTIVAL IS IT PROMOTES THE IDEA OF READING,
00:38:10AND IT'S NOT SOMETHING WE DON'T CHARGE PEOPLE TO COME HERE.
00:38:13WE ASK PEOPLE TO READ BOOKS, BUT
00:38:15WE ALSO WANT PEOPLE TO BUY BOOKS
00:38:17OR GIVE BOOKS TO THEIR CHILDREN AND READ WITH THEIR CHILDREN.
00:38:21ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS I'VE DONE WITH THE OF CONGRESS
00:38:24IS TO TRY TO PROMOTE LITERACY. I TALKED ABOUT IT EARLIER TODAY,
00:38:28BUT FOR PEOPLE WHO HAVEN'T HEARD THIS, YOU KNOW, ABOUT 90% OF THE
00:38:30PEOPLE IN THIS COUNTRY ARE FUNCTIONALLY ILLITERATE, WHICH
00:38:33MEANS THEY CAN'T PAST THE FOURTH GRADE LEVEL, 80% OF THE PEOPLE
00:38:36IN THE FEDERAL PRISONS SYSTEM ARE FUNCTIONALLY ILLITERATE
00:38:40ABOUT ABOUT TWO THIRDS OF THE PEOPLE IN THE JUVENILE
00:38:43DELINQUENCY ARE FUNCTIONALLY ILLITERATE. AND IF YOU'RE FUNCTIONALLY ILLITERATE, YOU CAN'T PROBABLY
00:38:47GET A JOB VERY WELL AND YOU'RE NOT GOING TO PROBABLY REALLY
00:38:50EARN VERY MUCH AND THEREFORE YOU CONTINUE THE CYCLE AND CHILDREN
00:38:54LEARN TO READ TO SOME EXTENT BY
00:38:56THEIR PARENTS READING TO THEM IF
00:38:58THEIR PARENTS CAN'T READ TO THEM, THEN THE CHILDREN ARE
00:39:01GOING TO GROW UP PROBABLY NOT HAVING A LOVE OF READING AND MAYBE NOT BE ABLE TO READ EITHER.
00:39:05SO I TO ME, READING IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING. ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT SKILLS
00:39:08YOU CAN GIVE A CHILD IS THE LOVE OF READING. AND I THINK AS ADULTS, PEOPLE
00:39:12SHOULD CONTINUE TO READ. NOW WE HAVE ANOTHER PHENOMENA IN
00:39:15THIS COUNTRY CALLED LITERACY, WHERE PEOPLE CAN READ BUT THEY CHOOSE NOT TO.
00:39:20AND ABOUT A LARGE PERCENTAGE OF PEOPLE IN THIS COUNTRY HAVEN'T
00:39:23READ A BOOK IN THE LAST YEAR OR SO. PEOPLE JUST DON'T READ AS MUCH AS THEY.
00:39:26UNFORTUNATELY, YOU TALKED ABOUT
00:39:29YOUR LOVE OF NOT JUST BOOKS WHEN YOU WERE SIX, BUT SPORTS BOOKS,
00:39:33RIGHT? THAT WAS SOMETHING THAT GOT YOU THROUGH WHEN YOU'RE CHECKING OUT 12 BUCKS A WEEK. WERE THERE PARTICULAR SPORTS
00:39:36BOOKS THAT IMPRINTED ON YOU AS A YOUNG KID? WELL, I ALWAYS READ THE BOOKS ON
00:39:39THE SPORTS HEROES. WHEN I WAS GROWING UP, BABE RUTH
00:39:42AND LOU GEHRIG AND PEOPLE LIKE THAT. AND YOU'RE A GRADUATE OF SYRACUSE.
00:39:46THERE WAS A GREAT BOOK I READ ON JIM BROWN, GRADUATE OF SYRACUSE,
00:39:48A GREAT BOOK, AND IS A BOOK ON ERNIE DAVIS, WHO WON THE HEISMAN
00:39:52TROPHY, AND THEN TRAGICALLY DIED OF LEUKEMIA. SO NOT LONG AFTER.
00:39:55SO I TRY TO READ, AS I READ, A LOT OF SPORTS BOOKS GROWING UP.
00:40:00I READ MORE OF THEM NOW, YOU KNOW, AND I JUST ENJOY IT. AND IT'S A FUN THING TO DO.
00:40:05AND I ENCOURAGE EVERYBODY HERE TO READ AS MUCH AS YOU CAN.
00:40:07AND, YOU KNOW, YOU'RE NOT GOING TO GET HURT BY READING TOO MANY
00:40:12BOOKS. THAT COULD BE THE SLOGAN FOR THE FESTIVAL NEXT YEAR. RIGHT? RIGHT.
00:40:16NATIONAL BOOK FESTIVAL. YOU'RE NOT GOING TO GET HURT BY
00:40:19READING TOO MANY BOOKS.
00:40:22WHERE DOES YOUR YOUR WRITING STYLE COME FROM THAT YOU HAVE?
00:40:26THIS BOOK IS STORIES ABOUT YOUR
00:40:28PURCHASING OF THE TEAM THE DAY TO DAY, AND THEN HALF OF IT IS
00:40:31THE CONVERSATIONS WITH DIFFERENT OWNERS. WHERE DID THAT STYLE DEVELOP?
00:40:35I KNOW THAT'S THE STYLE YOU USE IN YOUR OTHER BOOKS AS WELL.
00:40:37YOU KNOW, IF YOU'RE REALLY GREAT
00:40:39WRITER, YOU DON'T HAVE FILL UP THE BOOKS BY INTERVIEWING OTHER
00:40:42PEOPLE AND PUT THOSE INTERVIEWS IN.
00:40:45BUT WHEN I I'VE HAD A LOT I A LOT OF PROGRAMS IN WASHINGTON
00:40:49WHERE I INTERVIEW PEOPLE. ONE IS AT THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, WHERE FOR THE LAST
00:40:53DOZEN YEARS OR SO, I'VE INTERVIEWED PEOPLE IN FRONT OF
00:40:57MEMBERS OF CONGRESS. IT'S A PROGRAM WE STARTED CONGRESSIONAL DIALOGS AND AS A
00:41:00PROGRAM WHERE THANKS TO LIBRARY, CONGRESS, WE GET MEMBERS OF
00:41:03CONGRESS TO COME TO THE GREAT HALL, THE LIBRARY, GREAT HALL,
00:41:06THE LIBRARY, CONGRESS AND
00:41:08INTERVIEW A GREAT HISTORIAN ABOUT SOMETHING OR OTHER.
00:41:12AND MY THEORY IS THAT WHO SHOULD
00:41:14KNOW MORE ABOUT AMERICAN HISTORY THAN MEMBERS OF CONGRESS WHO ARE MAKING THE LAWS?
00:41:18AND SOME MEMBERS OF CONGRESS SHOW UP NOT JUST BECAUSE A FREE MEAL, BUT THEY SEEM TO LIKE IT.
00:41:22SO I DO THAT AND I THE STYLE
00:41:24THAT I CAME UP WITH WAS A POOR
00:41:28MAN'S WAY OF WRITING BOOKS, WHICH IS TAKE THE INTERVIEWS I'VE DONE, EDIT THEM DOWN AND
00:41:30WRITE SOME SUMMARIES ABOUT HIM BECAUSE IT'S EASIER TO DO THAT WRITING A NOVEL IS A LITTLE BIT
00:41:34PROBABLY BEYOND MY MY ABILITIES.
00:41:38IT IT IS STILL A SKILL THOUGH,
00:41:41TO BE ABLE TO INTERVIEW SOMEBODY AND BE ABLE TO GET THE INFORMATION YOU GET IN THE BOOK
00:41:45OUT OF THEM, PARTICULARLY, AS YOU SAID, SOME BOOKS DON'T DO A
00:41:48LOT OF MEDIA DON'T DO A LOT OF PRESS. HOW DO YOU APPROACH THOSE
00:41:52CONVERSATIONS? YOU'RE SITTING A ROBERT KRAFT OR A MICHELLE KING WELL, IN SOME OF
00:41:55THESE PEOPLE I KNOW THEM. SO IT'S EASIER IF YOU'RE INTERVIEWING.
00:41:58YOU ALREADY KNOW. SECONDLY, I TELL THEM, I'M NOT
00:42:02GOING TO EMBARRASS YOU. I'M NOT GOING TO ASK QUESTIONS THAT YOU WOULD FIND OFFENSIVE.
00:42:06AND SO AFTER MANY YEARS OF DOING THIS, PEOPLE REALIZE I'M NOT PROBABLY GOING TO DO THAT.
00:42:10GENERALLY, I TRY TO USE MY SENSE OF HUMOR A BIT TO KIND OF
00:42:14LIGHTEN THE TONE A BIT. AND I GIVE PEOPLE A CHANCE
00:42:17BEFORE I PUBLISH INTERVIEWS TO LOOK AT THE INTERVIEW AND SEE IF THEY WANT TO CHANGE IT.
00:42:20IT'S A IT'S A APPROACH, AND I, YOU KNOW, I'VE BEEN USING, BUT
00:42:23I, YOU KNOW, I DON'T THINK I'M GOING TO CHANGE IT. IT SEEMS WORK OUT.
00:42:26I HAVE ANOTHER BOOK COMING OUT THIS YEAR ON FROM THE LIBRARY
00:42:30AND PUBLISHED BY THE LIBRARY CONGRESS ON MY INTERVIEWS DONE AT THE LIBRARY CONGRESS OVER THE
00:42:35LAST 15 YEARS OR SO. AND I'LL I'LL GIVE YOU ONE STORY FROM IT.
00:42:39I INTERVIEWED ONE TIME THE CHIEF JUSTICE OF THE UNITED STATES, JOHN ROBERTS.
00:42:42AND IN FRONT OF MEMBERS OF CONGRESS. AND I SAID TO HIM, MR. CHIEF
00:42:46JUSTICE, DID YOU ALWAYS WANT TO BE CHIEF JUSTICE OF THE UNITED
00:42:50STATES SOMEHOW? WHEN I WAS A BOY, NO, I DIDN'T TO DO THAT. WHAT DID YOU WANT TO BE?
00:42:54I WANTED TO BE AN AMERICAN. AND MY FATHER SAID, JOHN, YOU'RE
00:42:57GOING TO STARVE TO DEATH. THERE'S NO MONEY IN WRITING ABOUT AMERICAN HISTORY.
00:43:01BUT JOHN SAID, THAT'S ALL I CARE ABOUT. IT'S AMERICAN HISTORY. SO HE WENT TO HARVARD AND HE
00:43:04MAJORED IN AMERICAN HISTORY, AND THAT WAS WHAT HE WANTED TO BE AN
00:43:08HISTORIAN. AND THEN HE CAME BACK FROM SPRING BREAK.
00:43:10HE SAID IN THE INTERVIEW AND HE
00:43:12LANDED AT LOGAN AIRPORT IN BOSTON AND GOT IN THE CAB AND
00:43:16SAID THAT A CAB DRIVER, WOULD YOU PLEASE TAKE ME TO CAMBRIDGE?
00:43:18AND THE CAB DRIVER SAID, WELL, ARE YOU A ARE YOU A STUDENT?
00:43:22YES, I AM. WHAT ARE YOU MAJORING IN?
00:43:25MAJORING IN AMERICAN HISTORY. AND THE CAB DRIVER SAID, WELL,
00:43:27WHEN I WAS A STUDENT AT HARVARD, THAT'S WHAT I MAJORED IN.
00:43:32ALSO.
00:43:34SO, YOU KNOW, JOHN CHANGED HIS COURSE AND HISTORY WAS
00:43:38DIFFERENT.
00:43:39SO AND, YOU KNOW, I YOU KNOW, I
00:43:44WOULD SAY I'VE ENJOYED GETTING
00:43:46TO INTERVIEW PEOPLE. AND ONE OF THE GOOD THINGS ABOUT
00:43:50INTERVIEWING PEOPLE IS YOU GET TO MEET PEOPLE YOU MIGHT NOT OTHERWISE GET TO MEET BECAUSE,
00:43:53YOU KNOW, PEOPLE GENERALLY, THEY'RE WILLING TO BE
00:43:56INTERVIEWED NOT EVERYBODY IS. AND YOU CAN HAVE AN ENJOYABLE TIME DOING IT.
00:44:00AND SO IT'S GOING TO BE FUN. YOU INTERVIEW PEOPLE ALL THE TIME, RIGHT?
00:44:03I DO. AND SO. AND HOW DID YOU GET INTO
00:44:06BROADCASTING? HOW DOES IT WHAT HOW DID YOU GET INTO BROADCASTING?
00:44:11WE JUST GOT THE WOMAN AT SIGN. I DON'T THINK THEY NEED MY BACK STORY AND PEOPLE AT THE FINAL
00:44:14MINUTE. BUT YOU GOT MORE APPLAUSE COMING OUT THAN I DID. SO PEOPLE MORE INTERESTED, MORE
00:44:18INTERESTED IN YOU. SO JUST TELL US ONE MINUTE. HOW DID YOU BECOME A BROADCASTER?
00:44:22OKAY, I'LL DO IT IN 30 SECONDS, SO I'LL GIVE YOU THE FINAL 30
00:44:25SECONDS LIKE YOU LOVED PLAYING BASEBALL. VERY BAD AT IT.
00:44:28LIKE YOU REALIZED AT A YOUNG AGE, I WASN'T TO BE A PROFESSIONAL BASEBALL PLAYER.
00:44:32UNLIKE YOU DIDN'T THINK I WAS GOING TO MAKE THAT MUCH MONEY.
00:44:36I JUST LOVED BEING SOCIAL AND
00:44:38LOVED GETTING TO KNOW PEOPLE AND
00:44:41LOVED TALKING, FRANKLY, WENT TO COLLEGE FOR IT. AND HERE WE ARE NOW. ALL RIGHT.
00:44:45WELL, YOU DID A GREAT JOB. YOU'RE DOING A GREAT JOB FOR THE ORIOLES. AND THANK YOU FOR DOING THIS.
00:44:49AND ONE MORE THING BEFORE WE GO. I KNOW YOU JUST THE WOMAN THAT SIGNED THE BOOK IS THAT
00:44:53SEPTEMBER 22ND. WE'VE TALKED ABOUT IT FOR 45 MINUTES.
00:44:57IS THERE ANY LAST THING YOU WANT FOLKS TO KNOW ABOUT WHY THIS
00:45:00BOOK MIGHT INTEREST THEM THAT WE HAVE NOT COVERED YET? WELL, I WOULD SAY THAT IF YOU
00:45:04WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT HOW OWNERS THINK, IT'S PROBABLY A
00:45:08GOOD WAY TO DO IT. THERE AREN'T THAT MANY BOOKS OUT THERE, SPORTS OWNERS.
00:45:11SO IT'S A LOOK INTO THE MINDSET
00:45:13OF SPORTS OWNERS. AND SOME OF THEM ARE PEOPLE HERE KNOW ONE OF THEM IS TED, THE
00:45:17OWNER SAYS, WHO OWNS THE WASHINGTON CAPS AND THE WASHINGTON WIZARDS.
00:45:20AND THEN MICHELLE KANG, WHO OWNS THE SPIRIT.
00:45:22SO, YOU KNOW, THAT'S A WAY PEOPLE CAN GET INTO THE MINDSET
00:45:25OF OWNERS. IF ANYBODY WANTS TO BE A SPORTS OWNER SOMEDAY, GIVE ME A CALL
00:45:29AND I'LL I'LL TELL YOU THE PLUSES AND MINUSES AND YOUR NUMBER FOR THE FOLKS WHO ARE
00:45:33INTERESTED IS MY NUMBER FOUR OR
00:45:385614. NOW, THAT'S THE WHITE. NOW, I DON'T KNOW.
00:45:42I DON'T REMEMBER MY NUMBER.
00:45:45DAVID, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANKS A LOT.
00:45:47THANK EVERYONE FOR COMING DURING