by Michael Wolff
Published in 1998 about a 1994-1997 journey of an aspiring new media dotcom company that almost did a deal with multiple big tech and online players before it all fizzled to nothing, the book that originally put Michael Wolff on the map is a fascinating story of the dotcom mania, as it was written way before the dotcom implosion, and way before we actually did know how this whole internet thing would play out. Filled with things that proved brilliantly prescient and also tragically naïve, the history was as gripping as the storytelling.
INSIDE THE GREATEST CRASH IN WALL STREET HISTORY
by Andrew Ross Sorkin
There are few writers in financial media like Sorkin, and none who can make historical events read with such gripping narrative. As he did with Too Big to Fail, Sorkin really makes you feel like you are inside the room with the key players as historical events play out. The Great Depression was not, not, not caused by the 1929 market crash, and Calvin Coolidge’s 1920’s policies did not, not, not cause the 1929 crash, but as for Sorkin’s storytelling, this was as fun of a read as I have had in a long time.
The King of Content:
SUMNER REDSTONE’S BATTLE
by Keach Hagey
As the Netflix/Warner Brothers/Paramount drama plays out, it is important to learn from history. And no history of media merger drama scratches the surface without diving into Sumner Redstone, the ruthless, sometimes pathological, brilliant, and often contemptible figure who may be the most important media executive in history. I came away learning a lot about how deep total depravity can go, but also how figures like Redstone are always two-sided coins. And like most stories of media M&A, I learned how money can be set on fire at scale.
Furious Minds:
THE MAKING OF THE MAGA NEW RIGHT
by Dr. Laura Field
This era of Trump will not be historically remembered as only about Donald Trump. Those who attempted to intellectualize the populist-Trumpist moment cover a wide array of characters. Field’s analysis here is fair, fascinating, and in some cases, disturbing.
EMPIRE OF AI:
DREAMS AND NIGHTMARES IN SAM ALTMAN’S OPEN AI
by Karen Hao
A fascinating read on the individual who has quickly become one of the most important names in all of American business, technology, and political economy.