John Malone Biographer Working on Follow-Up Book On Billionaire Media Investor

A second memoir on Hollywood media mogul John Malone appears to be in the works.

“Well, he’s had one,” Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei told the MoffettNathanson Media, Internet & Communications Conference during a session that was webcast on Tuesday. Maffei, who works hand-in-hand with Malone, was referring to the 2003 biography Cable Cowboy: John Malone and the Rise of the Modern Cable Business, by Mark Robichaux.

Maffei said Robichaux was at work on a second memoir, with no publication date specified. “He’s been working on that for at least three years. I remember getting interviewed for it a while ago,” Maffei added.

News of a new book about the original cable TV baron followed Maffei being asked how connected Malone was to his company after he signaled a semi-retirement. “John is not day-to-day, but obviously no major decision gets made without John’s approval. And frankly, even well before that, John’s input is invaluable,” he insisted.

“John is a huge asset, a huge resource and I absolutely value as counsel,” Maffei added.

The billionaire media investor has pulled back elsewhere. In 2018 he retired from the board of directors at Charter Communications, and more recently has left his post as the company as director emeritus. That decision was made over concerns around the Clayton Act, a 1914 antitrust law that the Department of Justice has been using to launch some investigations.

Malone still sits on the board of his holding company Liberty Media, where is he chairman, as well as on the board of Warner Bros. Discovery.