Corporate Gossip

A very haunted episode of the Corporate Gossip Podcast! Becca and adam talk about the House of Villains that is Pacific Gas and Electric. The collection of CEOs that have lead the utility company over the past two decades are are more dubious than Omarosa and more dimwitted than Jax Taylor. On the upside, this episode should cure even the most chronic cases of imposter syndrome.

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Hosts: Becca Platsky ([email protected]) Adam Platsky ([email protected])

Produced by: Michael Albanese @bigmanmike

Timestamps:

11:00 - "You guys need to stop talking about Enron" - said no one ever

15:00 - Peter Darabee is possessed by the ghost of Jack Welch and then gets scammed by Accenture

22:00 - Stay humble Tony Early

31:00 -Geisha Williams is rewarded for her job as pain sponge after the San Bruno explosions and is crowned CEO

46:00 - Bill Johnson, blink and you'll miss him

53:00 - Patti Poppe: New decade, same bullshit

It's hard to talk about corporate gossip without talking about McKinsey. They're everywhere! They advise the biggest companies in every industry in practically every company in America (90% of the Fortune 100 companies use Mckinsey). From Las Vegas Casinos to the Vatican, McKinsey consultants, armed with their Thinkbooks and Tumi rollerbags, dispense their advice on maximizing the bottom line under a veil of secrecy.

That is until recently, when dogged reporters sifted through thousands of documents made public as part of a series of lawsuits and criminal investigations into the firm. Becca and Adam read through it all and are bringing you the juiciest stories. They find out that when it comes to systemic corporate malfeasance, McKinsey isn't the one who lit the match, but they're often found fanning the flames.

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Hosts: Becca Platsky ([email protected]) Adam Platsky ([email protected])

Produced by: Michael Albanese @bigmanmike

Timestamps:

10:00 - Corporate Gossip #1: McKinsey, this is why we can't have nice things (Intro and background)

30:00 - Corporate Gossip #2: If Jack Welch is Theresa Giudice, McKinsey is Juicy Joe and today's billionaire boss-boys are 4 year-old Melania (How McKinsey influences the world's largest companies)

52:00 - Corporate Gossip #3: McKinsey: Our consultants are happy to provide clean pee for your patients who are addicted to heroin!! (McKinsey's role in the Opiod Crisis)

1:05:00 - Corporate Gossip #4: Enron is basically a McKinsey spinoff in which Jeff Skilling visits Ken Lay at the summer house in Montauk (McKinsey's role in the Enron rise & fall)

1:09:00 - Corporate Gossip #5: If you're looking for the Lizard people controlling the American economy it's not the west coast elites… it's McKinsey! (McKinsey as a Corporate Villian)

1:15:00 - Corporate Gossip #6: Clarence Thomas really went - guys know what would make McKinsey better??? If they had access to more white men!! Hey now… white men who can take me on Yachts. (How the overturning of affirmative action plays into McKinsey's ability to continue weaponizing capitalism)

This is part two of a two part episode.

This week, Billy Koch turns into a corporate vigilante, as he takes the Department of Justice and the FBI on a private tour of the grounds where all the Koch corporate secrets are buried. We then tell the story of courtroom fight as dramatic as a Beverly Hills housewives reunion, with siblings rehashing decades-old conflicts and clawing at their share of billions of dollars. Then, Charles Koch continues his campaign to be voted "most-miserly" in the 2008 Billionaire Yearbook by funding an artificial-grassroots organization to promote his libertarian big business-first policies. Meanwhile, Bill Koch's son Wyatt asks the Sharks to invest $100,000 for a 10% stake in his palm-beach-boroque men's blouse line.

See the Koch family tree

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Hosts: Becca Platsky ([email protected]) Adam Platsky ([email protected])

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Timestamps:

02:00 - Corporate Gossip #5: Woke up this mornin' and I got myself some oil from Native American reservations

11:30 - Corporate Gossip #6: Law and Order - Special Boss Bois Unit

21:00 - Corporate Gossip #7: Profit is my religion and regulation is the devil!!

24:15 - Corporate Gossip #8: It's a 45-day plan. 45 days! To get us back, on track. 45 points! It's a 45-day, 45-point, one point per day. We get 45 points, we're back in business! [cheers] And you can take that to the bank! And limo lady! We are going to completely destroy Barak OBAMA! [more cheers] I love you New York!

29:30 - Corporate Gossip #9: Charles Koch: Ooops! Did I do that????

33:00 - Corporate Gossip #10: Okay That was dark, let's end on a high note - Bill Koch's son's quest to create the ugliest t-shirts of all time

The only thing more toxic than the emissions spewing from the smokestacks at Koch industries are the relationships between the four adult heirs to the family fortune. This story has EVERYTHING: court battles, private investigators, homosexual blackmail, ANNA NICOLE SMITH, sibling rivalry, and libertarian summer camp! Join Becca and Adam as they wade into the stinky, polluted waters of the Koch family dynasty in this two part episode!!

See the Koch family tree

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Hosts: Becca Platsky ([email protected]) Adam Platsky ([email protected])

Produced by: Michael Albanese @bigmanmike

Timestamps:

09:00 - Corporate Gossip #1: Duck, duck, Fred Koch Sr. dies of a heart attack

16:15 - Corporate Gossip #2: Growing up Koch

39:00 - Corporate Gossip #3: Charles is our daddy now and you better believe he's gonna take his unresolved trauma and unexamined political beliefs and make all of our lives miserable

48:00 - Corporate Gossip #4: At the Koch family christmas party, Bill confronts David & Charles over stealing his Dolce & Gabanna lifestyle and wagers a war that will destroy the family

David Zaslav is having the worst summer ever. He was heckled by thousands of graduates during his Boston University commencement address, publically shamed for holding a hunger games style gala in france, and had to fire his best friend! Oh and to top it all off, all of the workers he extracts his wealth from are on strike. Why doesn't anyone want to work anymore!!

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Hosts: Becca Platsky ([email protected]) Adam Platsky ([email protected])

Produced by: Michael Albanese @bigmanmike

Timestamps:

6:30 - Corporate Gossip #1: With friends like David Zaslav, who needs enemies? Zas fires his pain sponge, Chris Licht, on their morning walk in Central Park under the apocalyptic orange-haze of the Canadian Wildfires.

15:00 - Corporate Gossip #2: In the year 2023 - the same year that CEOs have pissed away $44bn on a social media app, killed 5 people in an ill fated trip to the Titanic, and challenged each other to a cage match, David Zaslav is STILL in the running for dumbest CEO of the year…

27:00 - Corporate Gossip #3: I think David Zaslav is just here for the zipline

40:15 - Corporate Gossip #4: C'mon guys, don't strike, I had plans this summer! I was gonna hang out!

52:45 - Corporate Gossip #5: You can't keep getting away with this Zaslav *shakes fist in air*

Content warning: this episode references child abuse and suicide

Ted Turner has more BDE in his pencil mustache than Zuck and Musk combined. In the span of 5 years he captained a champion sailing yacht through the deadly celtic sea, pulled out an underdog win in the America's cup, bought two professional sports teams, and created the first ever 24-hour news network: CNN. His life is what LinkedIn Lunatics fantasize about. He created TBS, TNT, TCM, Cartoon Network, AND the iconic environmental superhero cartoon, "Captain Planet." He is cherished by unproblematic icons Jimmy Carter and Jane Fonda and despised by degenerate psychopath Rupert Murdoch.

Turner disrupted the media industry and spent years on top, but like so many of the characters in our podcast, he couldn't conquer his inner demons. Deep pain from a traumatic childhood and unaddressed mental health issues destroyed his marriage and threatened his fortune. In this episode, Becca & Adam attempt to trace the life of the chaos cowboy while expertly pronouncing the word "documentary."

Pictures & links on our substack

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Hosts: Becca Platsky ([email protected]) Adam Platsky ([email protected])

Produced by: Michael Albanese @bigmanmike

Cover art:

Creative director @laurensubers Photographer @danielcanophoto @instajasp Props / Wardobe @__julesrose__ @mellerycellery Makeup / Hair @mardeaubeauty

Timestamps:

8:40 - Corporate Gossip #1: In terms of Corporate Villains, David Zaslav, who we'll discuss next week, is the straight up evil, sociopathic type. But the other Corporate Villian in this story, Ted Turner, is more like the villain with a heart of gold.

36:50 - Corporate Gossip #2: Would you believe that the reason we have a 24 hour news cycle in America is because of Ted Turners undiagnosed mania?

48:10 - Corporate Gossip #3: Now it's time for Jimmy Carter to make an appearance as the empathetic king and Ted Turner's daddy figure (by the end of this segment, Jimmy Carter will be all of our dads).

59:10 - Corporate Gossip #5: As Ted's professional life is unraveling, Queen Jane Fonda throws in the towel and Ted lives out our collective fantasy - taking revenge on a boss that did you dirty.

1:04:20 - Corporate Gossip #6: Let's meet back up with Ted in present day as David Zaslav is meticulously picking apart his legacy with his hands and licking his little fingies like he's elbow deep in a pile of buffalo ribs.

Bonus Episode!!

It's like Jaws if everyone in Jaws worked for Jaws! It's the true story of Rupert Murdoch's main hustle (News Corp) and his side hustle (emotionally and financially manipulating his children). We trace Rupert's (aka RuMu) rise from under the thumb of his father, the original Murdoch Megalomaniac, to become an Australian media mogul. Then, he journeys to the UK and the US, leaving a stinky trail of editorial corruption wherever he goes. Strapped on his back are three of his grown children, Elisabeth, Lachlan, and James, who are pulling and poking at one another as they battle for daddy's treasure: the top spot of the Murdoch Empire!

We're on Youtube!!

Pictures of the Murdochs and research links are on our Substack!!

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Instagram: @corporategossippod

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Hosts: Becca Platsky ([email protected]) Adam Platsky ([email protected])

Produced by: Michael Albanese @bigmanmike

SEASON 2 FINALE!!

Thanks for your support this season, we'll be back with Season 3 later this summer!!

Don't forget to rate and review this podcast.

Becca and Adam flew close to the sun last week and decided to end the season on a high note. We answer some listener questions and crown our 2023 Corporate Cutie before getting into some feel-good Corporate Gossip.

The Costco story (18:45) is straight from a Jack Welch nightmare. Low CEO pay, a modest corporate headquarters, and no private jets?!!! Despite skimping on executive perks, Costco became a retail giant, peaking at #11 on the Fortune 500 list. And they did it without layoffs, downsizing, or offshoring… suck it McKinsey!! This episode has no strip clubs, accounting fraud, or subterfuge… BUT it does have threats of MURDER!!

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Tiktok: @corporategossippod

Instagram: @corporategossippod

Hosts: Becca Platsky ([email protected]) Adam Platsky ([email protected])

Produced by: Michael Albanese @bigmanmike

Timestamps:

01:00 - Intro (Confirmation that John Flannery is, in fact, still alive and thriving!! and our close encounter with Andy Cohen and why we're wrapping season 2

06:00 - Listener Questions

15:00 - Corporate cutie awards 2023

18:45 - Costco: Kings of Kirkland

Links:

Weddings by Costco

Costco foodcourt challenge

Costco CEO Craig Jelinek Leads the Cheapest, Happiest Company in the World

Link to chart with revenue / salary

Amazon and Walmart have raked in billions in additional profits during the pandemic, and shared almost none of it with their workers (Brookings institute expose)

Don't forget to rate and review this podcast!!

This is a true Corporate Gossip Exclusive: The ONLY comparative exploration of Enron and Vanderpump Rules.

On a summer day in 2012 in a restaurant garden in Weho, waitress Schena Shay confronts Housewife Brandi Glanville about the rumors of infidelity surrounding Brandi's husband, Eddie Cibrian. Narratively, this scene breaks the seam between the women of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and the servers who tend to them. And television's crown jewel is born: Vanderpump Rules.

Few know that there was another cosmic seam that ripped at the same moment, and merged two dimensions along thematic parallels: cheating, fraud, topless bars, uppers, women's rights, and women's wrongs. If you're a Vanderpump girlie who wants to get into Enron or an Enron bro who wants to get into Vanderpump - this is ENRON RULES!

We explore the Enron collapse by meeting each of the main players and following them throughout the Enron story. We'll start with the villains who commanded the corporate clusterfuck and then meet the heroes who had the guts to defy them.

This episode also features our DAD! @Jeffplatsky

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Support the pod by buying us a coffee

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Tiktok: @corporategossippod

Hosts: Becca Platsky ([email protected]) Adam Platsky ([email protected])

Produced by: Michael Albanese @bigmanmike

Timestamps / Cast of characters:

6:00 - Introducing our DAD, the original corporate gossiper!

10:00ish - The Enron Scandal as told through the eys of the villains and the heroes:

The Villains:

Enron CEO Ken Lay aka Tom Schwartz

Enron COO / CEO Jeff Skilling aka Jax Taylor

Enron CFO Andy Fastow aka Tom Sandoval

Bonus Villain! The Analysts aka Ken Todd and Lisa Vanderpump

The Heroes:

Enron Whistleblower Sherron Watkins aka Kristen Doute

Enron Whistleblower Margaret Ceconi aka Lala Kent

Fortune Journalist Bethany McLean aka Schena Shay

Links:

How Enron Blew It

The Smartest Guys in the Room: The Amazing Rise and Scandalous Fall of Enron (Book)

The Smartest Guys in the Room (Movie)

You're Wrong About: Enron (Podcast)

JUST DESERTS? / A year ago, Francine Cavanaugh tossed a pie at Jeffrey Skilling for gouging Californians now the former Enron CEO is under fire in Washington

A SUPERSIZED EPISODE!! Two pods in one!!!

Jack Welch is our collective Corporate Villain origin story. Potentially the most famous American CEO, Welch, like so many of the leaders we cover on this pod, possesses a dangerous combination of ruthlessness and incompetency. Adam and Becca trace his meteoric rise and salacious downfall before passing the reins of turd mountain (GE) to a series of doomed successors. Our apologies in advance to the fine people of Massachusets for our repeated unsuccessful attempts at a Boston accent.

P.S. John Flannery if you're reading this right now we love you please come on the pod <3333

Don't forget to rate and review this podcast!

We're on Youtube

Support the pod by buying us a coffee

Check out our reading list

Tiktok: @corporategossippod

Hosts: Becca Platsky ([email protected]) Adam Platsky ([email protected])

Produced by: Michael Albanese @bigmanmike

Links:

How Jack Welch's Reign at G.E. Gave Us Elon Musk's Twitter Feed

Was Jack Welch the Greatest C.E.O. of His Day—or the Worst?

Jack Welch: Managerial Genius Who Made One Disastrous Mistake

Harvard Editor Faces Revolt Over Handling of Welch Story

Pic of Welch and Suzy making out

Former GE CEO Jeff Immelt on his controversial legacy: 'I don't want to hide'

GE Cuts Larry Culp's 2022 Pay After Shareholder Protest

Corrections:

• GE is still the largest manufacturer of jet engines. Rolls Royce is #2 in the industry.