Ep. 239 - Alex Berenson: How to Write a Page-Turner

"I thought I was a joke or a test!"Douglas Rushkoff was led into a room at a desert resort where five mysterious billionaires awaited him. They peppered the media theorist and author with binary questions: Bitcoin or Ethereum? Virtual reality or augmented reality? Alaska or New Zealand?This experience sets the stage for Douglas's newest book, Survival of the Richest: Escape Fantasies of the Tech Billionaires, which focuses on "The Mindset, a Silicon Valley-style certainty that they and their cohort can break the laws of physics, economics, and morality to escape a disaster of their own making-as long as they have enough money and the right technology."*Today's episode explores the derivative and meta focus of today's financial and technology industry, so much so that the New York Stock Exchange has been purchased by a derivates exchange and Facebook has changed its holding company's name to Meta.Additional Topics Include: Why Alphabet will survive and Meta will fail (05:18)Will new technologies replace human labor or just camouflage it? (12:02)The 2000 merger of AOL and Time Warner (18:14)Is a scorched earth mentality necessary? (20:32)Why do billionaires donate so inefficiently (27:07)(Editor's note: Topic times don't account for sponsor ads and may appear a few minutes later in the episode on your podcast player)------------Visit Notepd.com to read our idea lists & sign up to create your own!My new book Skip the Line is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever books are sold!Join the You Should Run for President 2.0 Facebook Group, where we discuss why you should run for President.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltucher.com/podcast.------------Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please rate, review, and subscribe  to "The James Altucher Show" wherever you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsStitcheriHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on Social Media:YouTubeTwitterFacebook ------------What do YOU think of the show? Head to JamesAltucherShow.com/listeners and fill out a short survey that will help us better tailor the podcast to our audience!Are you interested in getting direct answers from James about your question on a podcast? Go to JamesAltucherShow.com/AskAltucher and send in your questions to be answered on the air!------------Visit Notepd.com to read our idea lists & sign up to create your own!My new book, Skip the Line, is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever books are sold!Join the You Should Run for President 2.0 Facebook Group, where we discuss why you should run for President.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltuchershow.com------------Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please rate, review, and subscribe to "The James Altucher Show" wherever you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsiHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on social media:YouTubeTwitterFacebookLinkedIn See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

22 Sep 202255min

Mitch Lowe has been a significant disruptor of Hollywood's distribution models over the past two decades, promoting all-you-can-eat subscription models on personal devices and at the box office. Netflix famously redefined consumer video distribution while Movie Pass infamously imploded in 2019. Today, Mitch speaks openly with James about why his companies ended up on their trajectories while describing the analytics that factor into their business plans.For a deeper dive into the dramatic evolution of the entertainment business, read or listen to Mitch's new memoir: Watch and Learn: How I Turned Hollywood Upside Down with Netflix, Redbox, and MoviePass?Lessons in DisruptionOther topics include:How Netflix's DVD queue saved the company (11:12)The genius of Netflix's auto-play feature (12:46)Content business models: ad sales vs. subscription (14:29)What led to Movie Pass' downfall? (17:46)Movie studios' stranglehold on movie theater pricing models (21:52)How Movie Pass used 'the float' in its business operations (29:22)The cost of acquiring digital distribution film rights (33:44)When does streaming become a commodity? (38:01)What will Netflix do to overcome the commoditization of the streaming market? (39:47)TikTok's algorithm vs streaming services (52:26)(Editor's note: Topic times don't account for sponsor ads and may appear a few minutes later in the episode on your podcast player)------------Visit Notepd.com to read our idea lists & sign up to create your own!My new book Skip the Line is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever books are sold!Join the You Should Run for President 2.0 Facebook Group, where we discuss why you should run for President.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltucher.com/podcast.------------Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please rate, review, and subscribe  to "The James Altucher Show" wherever you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsStitcheriHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on Social Media:YouTubeTwitterFacebook ------------What do YOU think of the show? Head to JamesAltucherShow.com/listeners and fill out a short survey that will help us better tailor the podcast to our audience!Are you interested in getting direct answers from James about your question on a podcast? Go to JamesAltucherShow.com/AskAltucher and send in your questions to be answered on the air!------------Visit Notepd.com to read our idea lists & sign up to create your own!My new book, Skip the Line, is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever books are sold!Join the You Should Run for President 2.0 Facebook Group, where we discuss why you should run for President.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltuchershow.com------------Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please rate, review, and subscribe to "The James Altucher Show" wherever you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsiHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on social media:YouTubeTwitterFacebookLinkedIn See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

20 Sep 20221h

Trung Phan returns to the show for a third time to discuss Warren Buffett's $18 billion miss on Disney - twice!He and James discuss the 92-year-old's growth investment strategies focused on long-term stakes, reducing risk profiles, and increasing margins decade-over-decade.Additional topics include:Warren Buffett's 1966 Meeting with Walt Disney (03:56)How Warren Buffet became CEO of Berkshire Hathaway (13:50)Warren Buffett's relationships with Michael Eisner and Bob Iger (20:00)Buffett's willingness to invest in a company "late" (30:24)How did Buffett's investment style change over the decades? (40:20)The story of Rose Blumkin and the Nebraska Furniture Mart (45:50)James' trading strategy to piggyback Berkshire Hathaway's positions (52:42)(Editor's note: Topic times don't account for sponsor ads and may appear a few minutes later in the episode on your podcast player)------------Visit Notepd.com to read our idea lists & sign up to create your own!My new book Skip the Line is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever books are sold!Join the You Should Run for President 2.0 Facebook Group, where we discuss why you should run for President.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltucher.com/podcast.------------Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please rate, review, and subscribe  to "The James Altucher Show" wherever you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsStitcheriHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on Social Media:YouTubeTwitterFacebook ------------What do YOU think of the show? Head to JamesAltucherShow.com/listeners and fill out a short survey that will help us better tailor the podcast to our audience!Are you interested in getting direct answers from James about your question on a podcast? Go to JamesAltucherShow.com/AskAltucher and send in your questions to be answered on the air!------------Visit Notepd.com to read our idea lists & sign up to create your own!My new book, Skip the Line, is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever books are sold!Join the You Should Run for President 2.0 Facebook Group, where we discuss why you should run for President.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltuchershow.com------------Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please rate, review, and subscribe to "The James Altucher Show" wherever you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsiHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on social media:YouTubeTwitterFacebookLinkedIn See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

16 Sep 20221h 2min

"It must be embarrassing for the World Champion to lose to me - I feel bad for him!" said Hans Niemann, after the defeat of Magnus Carlsen on September 5, 2022. Carlsen's subsequent withdrawal from the Sinquefield Cup - the first in his career - followed by a cryptic tweet suggesting Niemann cheated, have put the chess world on edge.Five days later, Chess.com - one of the largest online chess sites - banned Hans Niemann from its tournaments after accusations arose that Niemann had cheated in online chess tournaments. Adding to the political optics, Chess.com is in the process of acquiring Carlsen's company, the Magnus Group.Today, we are gracious to have IM Ken Regan on the podcast to help unravel this situation and discuss his methodology for detecting cheating in the chess world. When the chess world suspects someone of having cheated in a tournament, Ken Regan is the expert who gets the call.Using a database of tens of thousands of top-level games, Kenneth Regan, himself an international chess master, has devised a program that can help determine whether a player is playing like a human or like a computer.A member of the Anti-Cheating Committee of the World Chess Federation from 2013-14, he helped write and edit guidelines to prevent cheating in professional chess. He continues to serve as a consultant to the committee and previously served as an expert witness for the French Chess Federation, the Bulgarian Chess Federation and other governing bodies of chess.Additional topics include:How does the chess rating system work? (4:44)How does Chess.com's Cheating Analysis System Work? (11:14)How did the pandemic affect chess skills among youth players? (22:57)Can chess be "Moneyballed"? (1:26:20)(Editor's note: Topic times don't account for sponsor ads and may appear a few minutes later in the episode on your podcast player)------------Visit Notepd.com to read our idea lists & sign up to create your own!My new book Skip the Line is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever books are sold!Join the You Should Run for President 2.0 Facebook Group, where we discuss why you should run for President.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltucher.com/podcast.------------Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please rate, review, and subscribe  to "The James Altucher Show" wherever you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsStitcheriHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on Social Media:YouTubeTwitterFacebook ------------What do YOU think of the show? Head to JamesAltucherShow.com/listeners and fill out a short survey that will help us better tailor the podcast to our audience!Are you interested in getting direct answers from James about your question on a podcast? Go to JamesAltucherShow.com/AskAltucher and send in your questions to be answered on the air!------------Visit Notepd.com to read our idea lists & sign up to create your own!My new book, Skip the Line, is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever books are sold!Join the You Should Run for President 2.0 Facebook Group, where we discuss why you should run for President.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltuchershow.com------------Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please rate, review, and subscribe to "The James Altucher Show" wherever you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsiHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on social media:YouTubeTwitterFacebookLinkedIn See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

14 Sep 20221h 34min

David M. Rubenstein is Co-Founder and Co-Chairman of The Carlyle Group, one of the world's largest and most successful private investment firms. Established in 1987, Carlyle now manages $325 billion from 26 offices around the world. Rubenstein is Chairman of the Boards of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Council on Foreign Relations, and the National Gallery of Art. He is an original signer of The Giving Pledge and a recipient of the Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy and the MoMA's David Rockefeller Award.David returns to the show for a third interview with James to discuss his new book, How to Invest: Masters on the Craft, which pulls from his one-on-one interviews with the biggest names in finance, including  Ray Dalio, Marc Andreessen, Stan Druckenmiller, Sam Zell, Mike Novogratz, Larry Fink,  and Mary Callahan Erdoes.Topics include:What is the role of obsession in skill development? (04:03)Investment risk vs reputational risk (07:23)What are the most intriguing asset classes? (12:21)How much does an individual need to invest in distressed debt? (15:34)How important is the psychological component of investing? (21:26)Does the Federal Reserve actually know what to do about inflation? (25:19)Does the student loan forgiveness act counteract the Federal Reserve? (31:41)Value investing vs growth investing (35:41)How does David Rubenstein personally invest his money? (40:25)How do you protect downside risk? (51:36)(Editor's note: Topic times don't account for sponsor ads and may appear a few minutes later in the episode on your podcast player)------------Visit Notepd.com to read our idea lists & sign up to create your own!My new book Skip the Line is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever books are sold!Join the You Should Run for President 2.0 Facebook Group, where we discuss why you should run for President.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltucher.com/podcast.------------Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please rate, review, and subscribe  to "The James Altucher Show" wherever you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsStitcheriHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on Social Media:YouTubeTwitterFacebook ------------What do YOU think of the show? Head to JamesAltucherShow.com/listeners and fill out a short survey that will help us better tailor the podcast to our audience!Are you interested in getting direct answers from James about your question on a podcast? Go to JamesAltucherShow.com/AskAltucher and send in your questions to be answered on the air!------------Visit Notepd.com to read our idea lists & sign up to create your own!My new book, Skip the Line, is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever books are sold!Join the You Should Run for President 2.0 Facebook Group, where we discuss why you should run for President.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltuchershow.com------------Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please rate, review, and subscribe to "The James Altucher Show" wherever you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsiHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on social media:YouTubeTwitterFacebookLinkedIn See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

13 Sep 202258min

You can't believe some of the pitches that we heard during our hedge fund days!  One of the funds that we managed almost got scammed out of 10's of millions of dollars! Also, do you think a hedge fund for crypto is possible?In this episode, Dan, Omid, and I talked about the craziest pitches we have heard, what it's like investing privately, and Omid's origin story into the crypto world after he quit!This will be the last episode of the Wall Street Insane, however, we will do another series on all the crazy stories like these!Listen to the episode and tweet at me @jaltucher or Jay, the producer, @jay_yow to let us know if you like this episode!Visit Notepd.com to read more idea lists, or sign up and create your own idea list!My new book Skip The Line is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever you get your new books!Join the You Should Run For President 2.0 Facebook Group, where we discuss why you should run for president.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltucher.com/podcast.Thanks so much for listening! If you like this episode, please subscribe to "The James Altucher Show" and rate and review wherever you get your podcasts:Apple PodcastsStitcheriHeart RadioSpotify Follow me on Social Media:YouTubeTwitterFacebook ------------What do YOU think of the show? Head to JamesAltucherShow.com/listeners and fill out a short survey that will help us better tailor the podcast to our audience!Are you interested in getting direct answers from James about your question on a podcast? Go to JamesAltucherShow.com/AskAltucher and send in your questions to be answered on the air!------------Visit Notepd.com to read our idea lists & sign up to create your own!My new book, Skip the Line, is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever books are sold!Join the You Should Run for President 2.0 Facebook Group, where we discuss why you should run for President.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltuchershow.com------------Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please rate, review, and subscribe to "The James Altucher Show" wherever you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsiHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on social media:YouTubeTwitterFacebookLinkedIn See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

10 Sep 202258min

Today, we're sharing James' recent interview on the RealVision podcast 'My Life in 4 Trades'.Hosted by Maggie Lake, My Life in 4 Trades is a weekly podcast featuring the brightest minds in the world of finance. Each guest shares insights on the extraordinary trades that transformed their careers and the trades that set them back.Here's how they describe their interview with James:"James Altucher has been to hell and back. On the morning of September 11, 2001, James was just three blocks away from Ground Zero when two hijacked airplanes flew into the Twin Towers. He was one of the few who witnessed both impacts, and that led to years of post-traumatic stress disorder. He also went broke and lost everything. But he rebounded and found new success. James talks to Maggie Lake about the importance of resilience and open-mindedness when it comes to trading and investing and why he writes down 10 ideas every morning."Topics include:James gives his trading background in 5-minutes (03:20)James discusses 9/11 and his trades in the ensuing weeks. (08:18)Preferred stock and arbitrage trading (21:36)Closed-end fund trading principles (24:04)James' debate with Nouriel Roubini on CNBC - July 4th, 2010 (28:40)The Choose Yourself Bitcoin store in 2013 (35:31)The importance of keeping an open mind (41:32)Mastery in investing techniques (45:15)(Editor's note: Topic times don't account for sponsor ads and may appear a few minutes later in the episode on your podcast player)------------Visit Notepd.com to read our idea lists & sign up to create your own!My new book Skip the Line is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever books are sold!Join the You Should Run for President 2.0 Facebook Group, where we discuss why you should run for President.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltucher.com/podcast.Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please rate, review, and subscribe  to "The James Altucher Show" wherever you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsStitcheriHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on Social Media:YouTubeTwitterFacebook ------------What do YOU think of the show? Head to JamesAltucherShow.com/listeners and fill out a short survey that will help us better tailor the podcast to our audience!Are you interested in getting direct answers from James about your question on a podcast? Go to JamesAltucherShow.com/AskAltucher and send in your questions to be answered on the air!------------Visit Notepd.com to read our idea lists & sign up to create your own!My new book, Skip the Line, is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever books are sold!Join the You Should Run for President 2.0 Facebook Group, where we discuss why you should run for President.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltuchershow.com------------Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please rate, review, and subscribe to "The James Altucher Show" wherever you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsiHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on social media:YouTubeTwitterFacebookLinkedIn See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

8 Sep 202250min

"What is so deep in our core...that it's unchangeable in times of change?" - Jason FeiferEntrepreneur EIC Jason Feifer takes James through the stories and philosophies that resulted in his new book Build for Tomorrow: An Action Plan for Embracing Change, Adapting Fast, and Future-Proofing Your CareerIn this jam-packed episode, Jason shines a light on the tunnel vision that companies and employees force upon themselves and urges both to embrace the self-examination needed to thrive when market conditions change. Topics include:Who was the Emperor of San Francisco? (00:00:58)What are stories a more persuasive argument than data? (00:06:59)All about Build for Tomorrow: An Action Plan for Embracing Change, Adapting Fast, and Future-Proofing Your Career (00:17:20)The most important question of self-examination: What is it for? (00:23:59)Why should you write a single sentence that defines your mission? (00:35:33)Why did Jason write Build for Tomorrow? (00:38:30)How is Jason using the Skip the Line "Spoke and Wheel" technique? (00:40:59)The 3 types of stories you need to tell for consumer engagement (00:45:48)What is the real story of the demise of Blockbuster? (00:47:55)How can Jason's method of adaptation take risk into account? (00:56:01)Three questions to ask when preparing for change: What do I have, what do I need, what's available? (01:01:54)What are Jason Feifer's current answer to the three questions? (01:05:11)What advice did Jim Quik give Jason while writing the book? (01:11:40)What are Jason Feifer's current blind spots? (01:15:02)The importance of recognizing pivot points before you're forced to do so (01:25:22)(Editor's note: Topic times don't account for sponsor ads and may appear a few minutes later in the episode on your podcast player)------------Visit Notepd.com to read our idea lists & sign up to create your own!My new book Skip the Line is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever books are sold!Join the You Should Run for President 2.0 Facebook Group, where we discuss why you should run for President.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltucher.com/podcast.Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please rate, review, and subscribe  to "The James Altucher Show" wherever you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsStitcheriHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on Social Media:YouTubeTwitterFacebook ------------What do YOU think of the show? Head to JamesAltucherShow.com/listeners and fill out a short survey that will help us better tailor the podcast to our audience!Are you interested in getting direct answers from James about your question on a podcast? Go to JamesAltucherShow.com/AskAltucher and send in your questions to be answered on the air!------------Visit Notepd.com to read our idea lists & sign up to create your own!My new book, Skip the Line, is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever books are sold!Join the You Should Run for President 2.0 Facebook Group, where we discuss why you should run for President.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltuchershow.com------------Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please rate, review, and subscribe to "The James Altucher Show" wherever you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsiHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on social media:YouTubeTwitterFacebookLinkedIn See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

6 Sep 20221h 32min