Tyler Perry Explains Why He Wants To Acquire A Majority Stake In BET
After hearing that Paramount was considering selling the network, Tyler Perry announced his intention to acquire a majority share of BET.
According to him, he is very interested in the station that has aired several of his shows and wants to take over the majority stake.
In a recent interview with Entertainment Tonight at Tyler Perry Studios, he debunked rumours that he didn’t want any part of BET.
“Rumor? No, it’s not a rumor,” Perry said. “I’ve been there for four years now and had tremendous success. I wasn’t expecting this to happen, so, yes … If it’s possible, I’m gonna take as much of it as I can.”
The actor, producer, and writer stated his motivation for wanting to buy the station: restoring black control of the channel.
“I think there was sadness when Bob sold it, and I think there’ll be happiness when it’s Black-owned again. Even though Shari (Redstone) and what is it? Viacom and Paramount? They’ve done a phenomenal job with it.
“They didn’t let it fall by the wayside; they didn’t let it go into dust. They nurtured it and took care of it, and to see Shari at this position saying, I think it should be returned to a Black owner?’ I figured, ‘OK, see, that’s my kind of person.”
Perry isn’t the only black person who has expressed interest in buying BET; Byron Allen and P. Diddy are also considering doing so. Perry, on the other hand, is glad that well-known African-Americans are thinking about buying BET, despite the fierce competition to own it.
In his opinion, it is crucial that black people once again take control of the business. “I’ve read about Byron Allen and Puffy and everybody wanting to bid and so on and so forth, and I think it’s really great,” he said.
“This is what I love about it – when Bob Johnson sold it in 2000, I think it was, there wasn’t one Black person who could buy it. So now, to see all of these Black people, men and women, who are able to be in a position to buy it? Man, that makes me feel really, really excited.” he added.
Watch the video below
