He was alone in the Oval Office with JFK at fifteen years old, and that was just the beginning.
Lee Caplin has lived several lives: Justice Department lawyer protecting free speech, co-founder of the company that became Penske Media (Variety, Hollywood Reporter, Billboard), arts administrator, and now the architect of the journalism and media school at Florida International University. He sat down with Ivan Patriki to talk about how media quietly molds public opinion, the difference between reporting and news entertainment, and why he never lets anyone in the room who's expecting a "yes" for the wrong reasons.
From subwoofers that raise your tension on cable news to Chinese military money and the Paramount deal, this is a conversation about who really shapes what you think, and how AI, robotics, and rare earth mining fit into what comes next.
We cover:
Being alone in the Oval Office with JFK at fifteen (and the tie clip story)
Why FIU is "the third world rim" gateway for immigrants chasing the American dream
Protecting free speech and wetlands as a fresh law grad inside the US government
How Velocity Services became Penske Media and swallowed Variety, Billboard and Hollywood Reporter
The real difference between journalism, media, and mass communications
"News entertainment" vs. news: how sound design puts you on edge without you noticing
Hemingway and Joan Didion as journalists first, novelists second
Do governments quietly pay media to promote an ideology? (and why it's technically lobbying)
Chinese military money, Larry Ellison, and the Paramount/CBS ownership question
Fake news and deepfakes as an actual FIU course
Why you still need to physically go to college in the ChatGPT era
Secret societies, Skull and Bones, and the Raven Society sold on eBay
Why he's not afraid of AI (and why it won't be Terminator)
AI-controlled robots collecting samples from the sea floor off Florida
Rare earth mining with a scalpel instead of a broadsword
His advice for building a "new elite": consistency, reliability, and no class consciousness
MORE OF LEE CAPLIN:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lee-caplin-89981666/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leecaplin/
MORE OF ON THE MARGIN:
Website: https://www.themargin.tv
Spotify:
Main Site: https://www.on-the-margin.com
MORE OF BOAZ SOBRADO:
Twitter: https://x.com/sobradob
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sobradob
Website: https://themargin.tv/boaz-sobrado
MORE OF IVAN PATRIKI:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/artizt
Substack: https://substack.com/@artizt
Twitter: https://x.com/Ivan_patriki
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/artizt/?hl=en
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ascended
Telegram: https://t.me/ivanpatriki
Timestamps:
00:00 - Overseeing FIU, the gateway to the "third world rim."
02:21 - From Duke and UVA law to protecting free speech inside government.
04:14 - Camelot, Cronkite, and growing up around journalists.
07:00 - The secret to staying present: let someone else take the credit.
08:31 - Building the media empire that became Penske Media.
09:43 - How media molds public opinion without you realizing.
10:01 - Journalism vs. media vs. mass communications.
12:56 - Short attention spans, sound design, and news entertainment.
14:34 - Do governments quietly pay to push an ideology? The Paramount problem.
16:21 - Teaching fake news and deepfakes at FIU.
16:41 - The bridge from LA media to Florida education.
18:19 - Alone in the Oval Office with JFK at fifteen.
20:33 - Helping campaigns instead of running for office.
21:21 - Why you still need to physically go to college.
23:00 - Secret societies, Skull and Bones, and the Raven Society.
26:01 - Vision for the future: AI, robots, and no Terminator.
27:42 - AI, rare earth mining, and robots on the sea floor.
30:27 - Advice for building a new elite.
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