The Profile: The Murdoch seceding from his family & the billionaire who fell from grace
This edition of The Profile features James Murdoch, Bill Gates, Phoebe Gates, and more.
Good morning, friends!
Last week, I hosted a live Q&A with premium members of The Profile.
A reader asked me about my process for getting to the deeper, harder questions. Do I start with small talk or do I just dive right in?
Here’s what I said: Small talk earns you a bit of trust, which you can then use to ask the hard questions. But even then, sometimes, it can backfire and get really, really awkward. Sometimes a subject gets defensive or angry or visibly uncomfortable.
During one of my shadowing sessions, I asked a question that struck a nerve. The subject became upset, and the entire energy of the interview changed. In moments like that, every instinct tells you to retreat and make the awkwardness disappear.
But I often remind myself that the topics that make people uncomfortable are usually the ones that matter the most. So instead of backing away, I did the only thing I know how to do — I tried to understand.
Eventually, we got through it. I understood where he was coming from, and he understood why I was asking the question. Although I could tell that some of the trust evaporated after that moment, the exchange taught me something important about him.
I saw the mask drop, and for a brief moment, the polished answers disappeared, and I got to see the real person underneath. To me, that was a win.
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned from profiling people is that genuine curiosity can diffuse almost any emotionally-charged situation.
And in the end, the quality of the answers you get is usually a reflection of the trust you’ve earned.
— Polina
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THE PROFILES.
— The Murdoch seceding from his family [**HIGHLY RECOMMEND**]
— The billionaire who fell from grace
— The celebrity-backed AI shopping startup
— The billion-dollar beauty brand
— The anti-corporate hero of the games industry
THE PEOPLE.
The Murdoch seceding from his family: James Murdoch is buying New York magazine and Vox Media in a move that looks like a declaration of independence from his father’s legacy. While Rupert Murdoch built a media empire by giving audiences what they wanted, James is betting that in an AI-saturated world, trusted journalism and original ideas will become even more valuable — even if they generate less profit. The irony is that both father and son are building media empires around distinct audiences. They just have very different visions of the world. (The New York Times; alternate link)
The billionaire who fell from grace: Few people have spent more time managing their public image than Bill Gates. But after years of successfully recasting himself from tech villain to global philanthropist, his association with Jeffrey Epstein is threatening to unravel one of the most remarkable rebrands in business history. (WSJ; complimentary link provided)
THE COMPANIES.
The celebrity-backed AI shopping startup: Phoebe Gates is building an AI shopping startup with a cap table that looks more like a Met Gala guest list. Phia has raised $43.5 million, attracted dozens of celebrity investors, and already serves 1.5 million users. Gates wants Phia to become a personalized shopping agent that knows your taste, curates what you should buy, and eventually predicts what you’ll want before you do. (Vogue)
The billion-dollar beauty brand: Rhode has become one of beauty’s fastest-growing brands, reaching $390 million in annual sales and setting its sights on $1 billion in global retail revenue. Hailey Bieber’s strategy is simple but difficult to execute: turn a skincare brand into a lifestyle universe through viral products, immersive pop-ups, and carefully curated experiences that make customers feel part of a world. The challenge now is staying culturally relevant in an industry where consumers move on quickly and attention is the scarcest resource. (Vogue)
The anti-corporate hero of the games industry: Valve spent decades cultivating the image of an anti-corporate gaming utopia — a quirky, flat organization run by gamers for gamers. But as Steam grew into the dominant marketplace for PC games, critics began to see a company with enormous power, a 30% tax on developers, and rules that competitors say are impossible to escape. Now, antitrust lawsuits in the U.S. and U.K. are testing whether Valve is the benevolent backbone of PC gaming or simply another monopoly hiding behind a beloved brand. (Bloomberg; alternate link)
