Robert L. Johnson
Encyclopedia
Robert L. Johnson is an American
business magnate
best known for being the founder of television network Black Entertainment Television
(BET) , and is also its former chairman and chief executive officer
. Johnson is currently chairman and founder of RLJ Development and former majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats
, a National Basketball Association
franchise along with rapper Nelly
and NBA
legend and current majority owner Michael Jordan
. In 2001 Johnson became the first African American
billionaire, and the first black person to be listed on any of Forbes world's rich list (excluding black Canadian billionaire Michael Lee-Chin
who first appeared on the list the same year, who is of mixed black and Chinese ancestry).
on April 8, 1946, but spent almost all of his childhood in Freeport, Illinois
. He was the ninth of 10 children born to Edna Johnson and Archie Johnson. Johnson graduated from Freeport High School in 1964. He studied history at the University of Illinois
and graduated in 1968 with a bachelor's degree
. While at the University of Illinois, Johnson was a member of the Beta chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi
fraternity. He earned a master's degree
in International Affairs from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs
at Princeton University
.
For 33 years from 1969-2002 he was married to Sheila Johnson
. Together they founded the entertainment network BET
which sold the company to Viacom
in 2001. They have two children: daughter Paige Johnson (1986), and a son Brett Johnson (1990).
, the first cable television network aimed at African American
s. It was launched in January 1980, initially broadcasting for two hours a week.
In 1991 BET became the first black-controlled company listed on the New York Stock Exchange
. As of 2007, BET reaches more than 65 million U.S. homes and expanded into other BET-related television channels that make up the BET Networks: BETJ, and digital cable channels BET Hip-Hop
and BET Gospel
.
In 2002, Johnson took the company private, buying back all of its publicly traded stock. In 2003, BET was no longer a black owned business when Viacom
bought BET for $3 billion. Johnson's 63% stake made him worth over a billion dollars after taxes, making him the richest black person in the United States until surrendering the title to Oprah Winfrey
, when then-wife Sheila Johnson
claimed much of his billion in divorce
. Johnson continued to be the company's chairman and CEO for six years. In 2005, Johnson turned over the titles of President and Chief Operating Officer of BET to Debra L. Lee
, a former BET vice president.
funds; the three together have over $2 billion in combined assets and additional purchasing power of nearly $4 billion; RolloverSystems, a financial services company providing retirement planning services based in Charlotte, North Carolina; RLJ Equity Partners, a private equity fund that seeks expansion capital and buy out investment opportunities in six core industries; RLJ Select Investments, a multi-strategy hedge fund of funds platform; Urban Trust Holdings, a company that holds Urban Trust Bank, a federal thrift institution with operations in Florida, Washington, D.C., and Maryland, and a nationwide credit card operation; the NBA Charlotte Bobcats and Charlotte Arena Operations; Our Stories Films, a film production company based in Los Angeles; Caribbean Gaming & Entertainment (CAGE), a video lottery gaming company based in Puerto Rico with operations in St. Kitts and Barbados; and RLJ-McLarty-Landers Automotive Group.
. He is the first Black American to be the principal owner of a North American major-league sports franchise: He and Michael Jordan
led the group that acquired the Charlotte Bobcats
NBA
expansion franchise, which began play in the fall of 2004. Until December 2006, he also owned the Charlotte Sting
of the WNBA
. However, he gave up his ownership of the Sting; when the WNBA was unable to find a buyer, the team folded on January 3, 2007. On February 26, 2010, Johnson entered into a definite agreement to sell the Bobcats to Jordan, who served as head of basketball operations under Johnson's ownership. Terms of the agreement were not immediately available, in the brief statement Johnson gave to the media. Johnson, had been seeking a buyer for months and there was another group bidding to buy the team. The NBA Board of Governors unanimously approved the sale to Jordan on March 17, 2010. Johnson won't completely end his relationship with the team. A spokeswoman for Johnson said he'll be a minority investor in Jordan's ownership group.
In late 2006, Johnson founded Our Stories Films
, a Los Angeles
-based film
company. His partner is Harvey Weinstein
, whose own new enterprise, the Weinstein Company
, will serve as his distributor. JPMorgan Chase invested $175 million into Our Stories. His private equity fund
is financed partly by the Washington-based Carlyle Group
, while his hedge fund
has backing from Deutsche Bank
. Further Johnson has recently petitioned for a license to place a new cable network known as UTV on ION Group's network which will hold an 49% percent stake while RLJ companies will hold an 51% stake in the company. The network, Johnson said, will not only focus on the black community but would be a multi-faceted network.
In 2007, Johnson was so inspired by new Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf that he and a delegation of several Black-American leaders toured Liberia
and committed to revitalizing the historic relationship between Black-Americans and the war-torn country. This led to the creation of the $30 million Liberia Enterprise Development Fund. Months later Johnson wrote a controversial letter to the Washington Post advocating that the new AFRICOM
Military Command be based in Liberia. Johnson has also called for "African-Americans to support Liberia like Jewish-Americans support Israel".
He was inducted into Junior Achievement's U.S. Business Hall of Fame in 2008.
On October 24, 2008 Barbados
' Daily Nation
newspaper revealed that the Cabinet of Barbados
named Robert Johnson as their honorary Consul
to North
and South Carolina
.
.
Johnson said, "As an African-American, I'm frankly insulted that the Obama campaign would imply that we are so stupid that we would think Bill and Hillary Clinton, who have been deeply and emotionally involved in black issues when Barack Obama was doing something in the neighborhood that I won't say what he was doing, [but] he said it in his book." This statement was widely interpreted as a criticism of Obama's acknowledged use of marijuana and cocaine in his youth. The Clinton campaign denied this, submitting that the comments were referring to Obama's work as a community organizer . In subsequent days, Johnson was roundly criticized for his comments as hypocritical given the prodigious glorification of drug use and sale by artists prominently featured on BET .
On January 17, 2008, Johnson sent Obama the following apology:
"I'm writing to apologize to you and your family personally for the un-called-for comments I made at a recent Clinton event. In my zeal to support Senator Clinton, I made some very inappropriate remarks for which I am truly sorry. I hope that you will accept this apology. Good luck on the campaign trail." .
On April 14, 2008, Johnson made comments to the effect that Obama would not be the Democratic Party's leading candidate if he were not black, in support of the prior statement made by Geraldine Ferraro
. He also went on to say "I make a joke about Obama doing drugs (and it's) 'Oh my God, a black man tearing down another black man.' ".
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
business magnate
Business magnate
A business magnate, sometimes referred to as a capitalist, czar, mogul, tycoon, baron, oligarch, or industrialist, is an informal term used to refer to an entrepreneur who has reached prominence and derived a notable amount of wealth from a particular industry .-Etymology:The word magnate itself...
best known for being the founder of television network Black Entertainment Television
Black Entertainment Television
Black Entertainment Television is an American, Viacom-owned cable network based in Washington, D.C.. Currently viewed in more than 90 million homes worldwide, it is the most prominent television network targeting young Black-American audiences. The network was launched on January 25, 1980, by its...
(BET) , and is also its former chairman and chief executive officer
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
. Johnson is currently chairman and founder of RLJ Development and former majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats
Charlotte Bobcats
The Charlotte Bobcats is a professional basketball team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They play in the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association. The Bobcats were established in 2004 as an expansion team, two seasons after Charlotte's previous NBA...
, a National Basketball Association
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
franchise along with rapper Nelly
Nelly
Cornell Iral Haynes, Jr. , better known by his stage name Nelly, is an Grammy Award winning American rapper and actor. He has performed with the rap group St. Lunatics since 1993 and signed to Universal Records in 1999. Under Universal, Nelly began his solo career in 2000 with his debut album...
and NBA
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
legend and current majority owner Michael Jordan
Michael Jordan
Michael Jeffrey Jordan is a former American professional basketball player, active entrepreneur, and majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats...
. In 2001 Johnson became the first African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
billionaire, and the first black person to be listed on any of Forbes world's rich list (excluding black Canadian billionaire Michael Lee-Chin
Michael Lee-Chin
The Honourable Michael Lee-Chin, OJ is a Jamaican-Canadian investor. He is the founder and Chairman of Portland Holdings Inc., a privately held investment company which owns a collection of diversified operating companies in sectors that include media, tourism, health care telecommunications and...
who first appeared on the list the same year, who is of mixed black and Chinese ancestry).
Biography
Johnson was born in Hickory, MississippiHickory, Mississippi
Hickory is a town in Newton County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 499 at the 2000 census. The town is named after Andrew Jackson, nicknamed "Old Hickory," who passed through the area on his way to fight the Battle of New Orleans during the War of 1812.-Geography:Hickory is located...
on April 8, 1946, but spent almost all of his childhood in Freeport, Illinois
Freeport, Illinois
Freeport is a city in and the county seat of Stephenson County, Illinois, United States. The population was 26,443 at the 2000 census. The mayor of Freeport is George W...
. He was the ninth of 10 children born to Edna Johnson and Archie Johnson. Johnson graduated from Freeport High School in 1964. He studied history at the University of Illinois
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
and graduated in 1968 with a bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
. While at the University of Illinois, Johnson was a member of the Beta chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi
Kappa Alpha Psi
Kappa Alpha Psi is a collegiate Greek-letter fraternity with a predominantly African American membership. Since the fraternity's founding on January 5, 1911 at Indiana University Bloomington, the fraternity has never limited membership based on color, creed or national origin...
fraternity. He earned a master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
in International Affairs from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs
Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs
The Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs is a professional public policy school at Princeton University. The school has granted undergraduate A.B. degrees since 1930 and graduate degrees since 1948...
at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
.
For 33 years from 1969-2002 he was married to Sheila Johnson
Sheila Johnson
Sheila Crump Johnson is the team president, managing partner, and governor of the WNBA's Washington Mystics, a position she gained before the 2005 season. On May 24, 2005, Washington Sports and Entertainment Chairman, Abe Pollin, sold the Mystics to Lincoln Holdings LLC, where Johnson served as...
. Together they founded the entertainment network BET
Bet
Bet or BET may refer to:* A wager in gambling* Basic Economics Test * Bet , the second letter in many Semitic alphabets, including Aramaic, Hebrew, Phoenician and Syriac* Brunauer-Emmett-Teller isotherm. See BET_theory...
which sold the company to Viacom
Viacom
Viacom Inc. , short for "Video & Audio Communications", is an American media conglomerate with interests primarily in, but not limited to, cinema and cable television...
in 2001. They have two children: daughter Paige Johnson (1986), and a son Brett Johnson (1990).
Black Entertainment Television
In 1979, he left NCTA to create Black Entertainment TelevisionBlack Entertainment Television
Black Entertainment Television is an American, Viacom-owned cable network based in Washington, D.C.. Currently viewed in more than 90 million homes worldwide, it is the most prominent television network targeting young Black-American audiences. The network was launched on January 25, 1980, by its...
, the first cable television network aimed at African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
s. It was launched in January 1980, initially broadcasting for two hours a week.
In 1991 BET became the first black-controlled company listed on the New York Stock Exchange
New York Stock Exchange
The New York Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located at 11 Wall Street in Lower Manhattan, New York City, USA. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed companies at 13.39 trillion as of Dec 2010...
. As of 2007, BET reaches more than 65 million U.S. homes and expanded into other BET-related television channels that make up the BET Networks: BETJ, and digital cable channels BET Hip-Hop
BET Hip-Hop
BET Hip-Hop is a spin-off network of Black Entertainment Television. It appears on the digital cable tier of cable systems across the United States. The channel airs former BET programing and specials daily....
and BET Gospel
BET Gospel
BET Gospel is a cable television and satellite television network in the United States that presents gospel and inspirational programming. The network, a spin-off of BET , features a mix of new and classic shows as well as original gospel-oriented programming. It officially launched on July 1,...
.
In 2002, Johnson took the company private, buying back all of its publicly traded stock. In 2003, BET was no longer a black owned business when Viacom
Viacom
Viacom Inc. , short for "Video & Audio Communications", is an American media conglomerate with interests primarily in, but not limited to, cinema and cable television...
bought BET for $3 billion. Johnson's 63% stake made him worth over a billion dollars after taxes, making him the richest black person in the United States until surrendering the title to Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey is an American media proprietor, talk show host, actress, producer and philanthropist. Winfrey is best known for her self-titled, multi-award-winning talk show, which has become the highest-rated program of its kind in history and was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2011...
, when then-wife Sheila Johnson
Sheila Johnson
Sheila Crump Johnson is the team president, managing partner, and governor of the WNBA's Washington Mystics, a position she gained before the 2005 season. On May 24, 2005, Washington Sports and Entertainment Chairman, Abe Pollin, sold the Mystics to Lincoln Holdings LLC, where Johnson served as...
claimed much of his billion in divorce
Divorce
Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
. Johnson continued to be the company's chairman and CEO for six years. In 2005, Johnson turned over the titles of President and Chief Operating Officer of BET to Debra L. Lee
Debra L. Lee
Debra L. Lee, Esq. is an American businesswoman. Currently, she is the President and Chief Executive Officer of BET Holdings, Inc., the parent company for Black Entertainment Television. She is the mother of two children and is affiliated with the Democratic Party...
, a former BET vice president.
Second Act/RLJ Companies
Upon selling BET Johnson started The RLJ Companies which he calls his "Second Act". Johnson's goal is to create a premier holding company and asset management firm run by a minority businessperson. The RLJ companies is a diverse portfolio of companies in the financial services, real estate, hospitality, professional sports, film production, automotive and gaming industries. An innovative business network, The RLJ Companies seeks to target undiscovered or underserved markets; then exercise solid management to achieve results. The RLJ Companies is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, with operations in Charlotte, North Carolina; Los Angeles, California; Orlando, Florida; Little Rock, Arkansas, Mexico and San Juan, Puerto Rico. The RLJ Companies’ core businesses include: RLJ Development, a privately held hotel real estate investment company; RLJ Lodging Fund II and RLJ Real Estate Fund III, both of which are private equity real estatePrivate equity real estate
In investment finance, private equity real estate is an asset class consisting of equity and debt investments in property. Investments typically involve an active management strategy ranging from moderate reposition or releasing of properties to development or extensive redevelopment.Investments...
funds; the three together have over $2 billion in combined assets and additional purchasing power of nearly $4 billion; RolloverSystems, a financial services company providing retirement planning services based in Charlotte, North Carolina; RLJ Equity Partners, a private equity fund that seeks expansion capital and buy out investment opportunities in six core industries; RLJ Select Investments, a multi-strategy hedge fund of funds platform; Urban Trust Holdings, a company that holds Urban Trust Bank, a federal thrift institution with operations in Florida, Washington, D.C., and Maryland, and a nationwide credit card operation; the NBA Charlotte Bobcats and Charlotte Arena Operations; Our Stories Films, a film production company based in Los Angeles; Caribbean Gaming & Entertainment (CAGE), a video lottery gaming company based in Puerto Rico with operations in St. Kitts and Barbados; and RLJ-McLarty-Landers Automotive Group.
Other ventures
Johnson also serves on the boards of General MillsGeneral Mills
General Mills, Inc. is an American Fortune 500 corporation, primarily concerned with food products, which is headquartered in Golden Valley, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis. The company markets many well-known brands, such as Betty Crocker, Yoplait, Colombo, Totinos, Jeno's, Pillsbury, Green...
. He is the first Black American to be the principal owner of a North American major-league sports franchise: He and Michael Jordan
Michael Jordan
Michael Jeffrey Jordan is a former American professional basketball player, active entrepreneur, and majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats...
led the group that acquired the Charlotte Bobcats
Charlotte Bobcats
The Charlotte Bobcats is a professional basketball team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They play in the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association. The Bobcats were established in 2004 as an expansion team, two seasons after Charlotte's previous NBA...
NBA
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
expansion franchise, which began play in the fall of 2004. Until December 2006, he also owned the Charlotte Sting
Charlotte Sting
The Charlotte Sting was a Women's National Basketball Association franchise based in Charlotte, North Carolina and it was one of the league's eight original teams. The team folded on January 3, 2007....
of the WNBA
Women's National Basketball Association
The Women's National Basketball Association is a women's professional basketball league in the United States. It currently is composed of twelve teams. The league was founded on April 24, 1996 as the women's counterpart to the National Basketball Association...
. However, he gave up his ownership of the Sting; when the WNBA was unable to find a buyer, the team folded on January 3, 2007. On February 26, 2010, Johnson entered into a definite agreement to sell the Bobcats to Jordan, who served as head of basketball operations under Johnson's ownership. Terms of the agreement were not immediately available, in the brief statement Johnson gave to the media. Johnson, had been seeking a buyer for months and there was another group bidding to buy the team. The NBA Board of Governors unanimously approved the sale to Jordan on March 17, 2010. Johnson won't completely end his relationship with the team. A spokeswoman for Johnson said he'll be a minority investor in Jordan's ownership group.
In late 2006, Johnson founded Our Stories Films
Our Stories Films
Our Stories Films is an American film studio founded in 2006 by Robert L. Johnson producing "comedic, family-friendly feature films for African American and urban audiences." On August 31, 2006, it was announced that Tracey Edmonds was named president and chief operating officer of Our Stories...
, a Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
-based film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
company. His partner is Harvey Weinstein
Harvey Weinstein
Harvey Weinstein, CBE is an American film producer and movie studio chairman. He is best known as co-founder of Miramax Films. He and his brother Bob have been co-chairmen of The Weinstein Company, their film production company, since 2005...
, whose own new enterprise, the Weinstein Company
The Weinstein Company
The Weinstein Company is an American film studio founded by Bob and Harvey Weinstein in 2005 after the brothers left the then-Disney-owned Miramax Films, which they had co-founded in 1979...
, will serve as his distributor. JPMorgan Chase invested $175 million into Our Stories. His private equity fund
Private equity
Private equity, in finance, is an asset class consisting of equity securities in operating companies that are not publicly traded on a stock exchange....
is financed partly by the Washington-based Carlyle Group
Carlyle Group
The Carlyle Group is an American-based global asset management firm, specializing in private equity, based in Washington, D.C. The Carlyle Group operates in four business areas: corporate private equity, real assets, market strategies and fund-of-funds, through its AlpInvest subsidiary...
, while his hedge fund
Hedge fund
A hedge fund is a private pool of capital actively managed by an investment adviser. Hedge funds are only open for investment to a limited number of accredited or qualified investors who meet criteria set by regulators. These investors can be institutions, such as pension funds, university...
has backing from Deutsche Bank
Deutsche Bank
Deutsche Bank AG is a global financial service company with its headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany. It employs more than 100,000 people in over 70 countries, and has a large presence in Europe, the Americas, Asia Pacific and the emerging markets...
. Further Johnson has recently petitioned for a license to place a new cable network known as UTV on ION Group's network which will hold an 49% percent stake while RLJ companies will hold an 51% stake in the company. The network, Johnson said, will not only focus on the black community but would be a multi-faceted network.
In 2007, Johnson was so inspired by new Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf that he and a delegation of several Black-American leaders toured Liberia
Liberia
Liberia , officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Sierra Leone on the west, Guinea on the north and Côte d'Ivoire on the east. Liberia's coastline is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the more sparsely populated inland consists of forests that open...
and committed to revitalizing the historic relationship between Black-Americans and the war-torn country. This led to the creation of the $30 million Liberia Enterprise Development Fund. Months later Johnson wrote a controversial letter to the Washington Post advocating that the new AFRICOM
United States Africa Command
The United States Africa Command is one of nine Unified Combatant Commands of the United States Armed Forces, headquartered at Kelley Barracks, Stuttgart, Germany. It is responsible for U.S. military operations and military relations with 53 African nations – an area of responsibility covering all...
Military Command be based in Liberia. Johnson has also called for "African-Americans to support Liberia like Jewish-Americans support Israel".
He was inducted into Junior Achievement's U.S. Business Hall of Fame in 2008.
On October 24, 2008 Barbados
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
' Daily Nation
The Daily Nation (Barbados)
The Nation Publishing Company Limited is the publisher of the Nation Newspaper, which is the dominant daily newspaper in the country of Barbados. First established in 1973 the Daily Nation is printed daily in colour and distributed at many points around the country...
newspaper revealed that the Cabinet of Barbados
Cabinet of Barbados
The Cabinet of Barbados is the executive committee that looks after the management of the country. It is chaired by Prime Minister Freundel Stuart and is composed of 18 Ministers....
named Robert Johnson as their honorary Consul
Consul (representative)
The political title Consul is used for the official representatives of the government of one state in the territory of another, normally acting to assist and protect the citizens of the consul's own country, and to facilitate trade and friendship between the peoples of the two countries...
to North
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
and South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
.
Involvement in 2008 Democratic Presidential Primary
In January, 2008, Johnson became the target of criticism for remarks he made to supporters of Hillary Clinton about Barack ObamaBarack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
.
Johnson said, "As an African-American, I'm frankly insulted that the Obama campaign would imply that we are so stupid that we would think Bill and Hillary Clinton, who have been deeply and emotionally involved in black issues when Barack Obama was doing something in the neighborhood that I won't say what he was doing, [but] he said it in his book." This statement was widely interpreted as a criticism of Obama's acknowledged use of marijuana and cocaine in his youth. The Clinton campaign denied this, submitting that the comments were referring to Obama's work as a community organizer . In subsequent days, Johnson was roundly criticized for his comments as hypocritical given the prodigious glorification of drug use and sale by artists prominently featured on BET .
On January 17, 2008, Johnson sent Obama the following apology:
"I'm writing to apologize to you and your family personally for the un-called-for comments I made at a recent Clinton event. In my zeal to support Senator Clinton, I made some very inappropriate remarks for which I am truly sorry. I hope that you will accept this apology. Good luck on the campaign trail." .
On April 14, 2008, Johnson made comments to the effect that Obama would not be the Democratic Party's leading candidate if he were not black, in support of the prior statement made by Geraldine Ferraro
Geraldine Ferraro
Geraldine Anne Ferraro was an American attorney, a Democratic Party politician, and a member of the United States House of Representatives. She was the first female Vice Presidential candidate representing a major American political party....
. He also went on to say "I make a joke about Obama doing drugs (and it's) 'Oh my God, a black man tearing down another black man.' ".