Before Black Entertainment Television, there was a void where the images and stories of Black America should have been. Robert Louis Johnson, a businessman with a keen eye for untapped potential, was the man who identified this empty space and, against considerable odds, built a media empire to fill it. In doing so, he would not only change the landscape of American television but would also become the first African American billionaire in the United States.
Born in Hickory, Mississippi, in April 1946, Johnson was the ninth of ten children in a family that valued education and hard work. His mother was a schoolteacher and his father a farmer, and they eventually moved the family to Freeport, Illinois, where Johnson grew up.
An entrepreneurial instinct revealed itself early; as a boy, he once reflected that working for oneself was preferable to a traditional job. He was an honours student in high school and went on to study history at the University of Illinois, earning his bachelor‘s degree in 1968. His academic journey continued at Princeton University, where he obtained a master’s degree in public affairs from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs in 1972.
With his degrees in hand, Johnson moved to Washington, D.C., a city that would serve as the proving ground for his future ambitions. He held a series of positions that introduced him to the worlds of media and politics, working for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the National Urban League, and as a press secretary for a congressional delegate.
In 1976, he became a lobbyist for the National Cable Television Association, a role that would provide the crucial insight that defined his career. As he worked to represent cable companies, he noticed a glaring oversight: the substantial African American television audience was almost entirely ignored by programmers and advertisers. It was a market waiting to be served.
In 1979, Johnson left his lobbying job to pursue his vision. With a $15,000 loan and a subsequent $500,000 investment from a cable industry executive, he and his then-wife, Sheila, launched Black Entertainment Television in January 1980. The network began humbly, broadcasting for only two hours each week.
The initial programming was modest, consisting largely of old films and music videos, particularly from rhythm and blues and hip-hop artists who received little airtime on other music channels. The concept, however, was sound, and the audience was eager. By the early 1990s, BET was not only profitable but had expanded to a 24-hour channel, reaching tens of millions of households.
A landmark moment arrived in 1991 when BET Holdings became the first African American-controlled company to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange. The network grew throughout the decade, adding new channels, a film division, and publications, solidifying its place as a cultural touchstone.
In 1998, Johnson took the company private again, and three years later, he orchestrated its sale to the media giant Viacom for approximately $3 billion. That transaction made Robert L. Johnson the first African American billionaire in the country.
His career, however, was far from over, Johnson formed the RLJ Companies, a holding company that would invest in a diverse array of industries, including hotels, restaurants, financial services, and film production. In 2002, he achieved another historic first by becoming the first African American majority owner of a major professional sports franchise in the United States, purchasing the NBA’s expansion team in Charlotte, North Carolina, the Bobcats.
He later sold his stake in the team to basketball legend Michael Jordan. His business interests have also extended to philanthropy and international development, most notably through a fund he established to support entrepreneurs in Liberia.
Throughout his life, Johnson has been an outspoken and sometimes controversial figure in American politics, using his platform to advocate for economic empowerment and to encourage political engagement, often urging African Americans to wield their voting power strategically.
Robert Johnson’s legacy is ultimately one of vision and barrier-breaking. He saw an opportunity where others saw nothing, and from that simple observation, he built an empire that gave a generation its image on screen and proved that the boundaries of business could be redrawn.
