Robert L. Johnson Net Worth: Robert L. Johnson is a multi-talented American businessman, investor, philanthropist, and media mogul. BET, which was later purchased by Viacom, was founded in part by him. A diversified holding firm, RLJ Companies was also started by him. Moreover, Robert L. Johnson Net Worth became wealthy as he earned income from the BET channel and became a billionaire after selling Viacom network.
Johnson used to be the main owner of the NBA’s Charlotte Bobcats. In 2001, he made history as the first black American to amass $1 billion in wealth. Companies founded by Johnson have been among the most successful and well-known African-American entrepreneurs of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. In the next paragraph, Robert L. Net Worth has been revealed
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Robert L. Johnson Net Worth
Robert L. Johnson is an American entrepreneur, executive, and investor with an estimated $650 million fortune. Most notably, Robert L. Johnson and his wife Sheila Johnson co-founded the cable network BET in 1980. In addition, he formed RLJ Companies and served as the Charlotte Bobcats’ main owner from 2002 until 2010. Johnson is renowned for becoming the first African-American to become a billionaire, a distinction he attained in 2001 after selling BET to Viacom.
Black Entertainment Television (BET) was established by him in 1980. BET was the first significant TV network with an African-American focus. BET is the first black-owned firm to debut on the NYSE in 1991. Viacom paid $3 billion to purchase BET in 2000. Johnson left the business in 2006. He then founded the RLJ Companies, a holding firm with an extremely varied portfolio.
He bought the NBA’s Charlotte Bobcats in 2002, making him the first African-American to hold a majority ownership position in a significant American sports franchise. In 2010, he sold Michael Jordan his controlling interest.
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Robert L. Johnson Early Years
Robert L. Johnson, the ninth of ten children, was born on April 8, 1946, in Hickory, Mississippi to farmers Archie and Edna Johnson. He and his family had previously lived in California but relocated to Freeport, Illinois when he was a little boy. While still a young adult, Johnson enrolled at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and earned a bachelor’s degree in social studies in 1968. After that, he continued his education by getting his master’s degree in public affairs from Princeton University in 1972.
Robert L. Johnson Career Life
Johnson and his wife Sheila established Black Entertainment Television (BET) in 1979, making it the first cable network catering to the African American community. In its first month on the air, January 1980, it aired for a total of two hours. When it went public in 1991, BET made history as the first corporation founded and controlled by African Americans to do so. Since then, the network has expanded to serve tens of millions of homes and incorporate both analog and digital broadcasting.
Viacom revealed its intention to acquire BET in the year 2000. After the deal closed the next year, Johnson had become the first African American billionaire and the wealthiest African American in the United States, having made more than $1 billion from his controlling interest in the company. Following his departure from BET to head the RLJ Companies, Johnson remained chairman and CEO of the firm for some time.
Johnson established the RLJ Companies following the sale of BET to Viacom. Holding corporation and asset management firm RLJ owns and operates enterprises in the fields of banking, real estate, hotels, professional sports, film production, automobile manufacturing, and gaming. They say that RLJ is Johnson’s “second act.”
As an investor, Johnson has backed some well-known entities that are not part of the RLJ family. In North America, he owned the Charlotte Bobcats as the first black principle owner of a major league sports team. In 2006, Johnson and Harvey Weinstein established the production company Our Stories Films. The company’s focus is on producing quality films for African-American families. The romantic comedy film Jumping the Broom was released by Our Stories in 2011.
As well as his commercial endeavors, Johnson has also dabbled in politics. In 2007, Johnson led a group of African American corporate titans on a trip to Liberia. The Liberia Enterprise Development Fund was founded as a direct result of this tour. Like Jews support Israel, Johnson openly called on African Americans to back Liberia. During the 2008 Democratic primary election, Johnson was criticized for voting against Barack Obama and for Hillary Clinton.
Robert L. Johnson Private Life
He married Sheila Johnson, with whom he would later start BET, in 1969. They had two children together before splitting up in 2002. Sheila Johnson later founded Salamander Hospitality, a company that manages a variety of hotels, spas, and golf courses.
She also bought shares in the National Hockey League’s Washington Capitals, the National Basketball Association’s Washington Wizards, and the Women’s National Basketball Association’s Washington Mystics. A relationship between Johnson and student Lauren Wooden, 33 years his junior, began in 2010. They tied the knot in 2016, but are now planning to separate in 2020.
Robert L. Johnson’s Various Business Endeavours
Johnson established Axiom Bank in Maitland, Florida, among his many other business enterprises. Additionally, he has served on several boards of directors, including those of KB Home, Thinks Finance, Lowe’s Companies, the National Museum of African American History and Culture of the Smithsonian Institution, Hilton Hotels, and General Mills.
In the meanwhile, Johnson launched his own video-on-demand streaming platform called Urban Movie Channel in 2014, returning to the television industry. It is run by AMC Networks and offers original movies and TV shows targeted toward African-American viewers. The channel was rebranded Allblk at the beginning of 2021.
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Conclusion
To conclude, it is vividly apparent that we have described Robert L. Johnson Net Worth. He is an American businessman best known for founding the BET network and becoming the first African American billionaire in the nation. The BET channel was where he received most of his money. We hope you like our page and for more updates kindly visit our channel talkxbox.com
