The Network Quotes

“This was the way to getting the FCC to support good public policy, Bill McGowan believed. Only a fool would walk into the regulatory agency, make a straightforward case for competition, and expect to win.”
― Scott Woolley, The Network: The Hidden History of a Trillion Dollar Business Heist

“AS A KID GROWING UP IN A RURAL PENNSYLVANIA COAL COUNTRY in the 1930s and 1940s, Bill McGowan never dreamed of a career as a businessman, unaware that such a profession even existed. The son of a railroad engineer and a schoolteacher, McGowan got his first glimpse of the wider world during a three-year stint in the U.S. Army in postwar Europe, after which he returned home to complete an undergraduate degree in chemistry at King’s College in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. McGowan excelled at chemistry, thanks to his talent for comprehending the rules of complex systems, but found little joy in the subject. His plans for a career in medicine left him similarly lukewarm. One King’s College professor surmised the gregarious, hyper-analytical student’s true calling and suggested he apply for a seat in Harvard Business School’s class of 1954.”
― Scott Woolley, The Network: The Hidden History of a Trillion Dollar Business Heist

“He directed ... to go to the Georgetown University Medical School library and bring back everything they could find about heart transplants. McGowan became an expert, spouting survival statistics and talking knowledgeably about drug therapies and the leading specialists.”
― Scott Woolley, The Network: The Battle for the Airwaves and the Birth of the Communications Age

“You realize that you are not indispensable .... And you learn that the lengthening of life is a superior goal over nearly everything else.'' Bill McGowan”
― Scott Woolley, The Network: The Battle for the Airwaves and the Birth of the Communications Age

“... It was just another confirmation of the lesson he learned from Marconi earlier... when wagering on the future of technology, bet on the optimists...Eventually they're going to be right.”
― Scott Woolley, The Network: The Battle for the Airwaves and the Birth of the Communications Age

“Some people read books...Bill McGovan reads libraries”
― Scott Woolley, The Network: The Battle for the Airwaves and the Birth of the Communications Age