Good Guys and Bad Guys

Behind the Scenes with the Saints and Scoundrels of American Business (and Every thing in Between)

Author Joe Nocera
The greatest columns and profiles by the bestselling coauthor of All the Devils Are Here.

What's it like to be a top tobacco executive when your kid asks you about smoking? How did a young liberal arts major become the hottest tech-stock analyst of the '90s, and why did he self-destruct? How did one family's dysfunction change the media landscape?

Some people think business journalism is all about balance sheets, income statements, and earnings per share. But if you want to answer the really interesting questions-about heroes and hucksters, visionaries and madmen, and other larger-than-life characters-you need a reporter like Joe Nocera.

For more than twenty-five years Nocera has shed new light on the giants of the business world-Warren Buffett, T. Boone Pickens, Bob Nardelli-as well as on the less famous but equally fascinating. He builds stories around their motivations, personalities, and deepest characters. And instead of just pigeonholing them as good guys or bad guys, he explores the gray areas in between.

Joe Nocera is an op-ed columnist for The New York Times. His previous books include All the Devils Are Here (with Bethany McLean), Good Guys and Bad Guys, and A Piece of the Action. He has won three Gerald Loeb Awards for excellence in business journalism and was a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize in 2006. Nocera lives in New York City. View titles by Joe Nocera

About

The greatest columns and profiles by the bestselling coauthor of All the Devils Are Here.

What's it like to be a top tobacco executive when your kid asks you about smoking? How did a young liberal arts major become the hottest tech-stock analyst of the '90s, and why did he self-destruct? How did one family's dysfunction change the media landscape?

Some people think business journalism is all about balance sheets, income statements, and earnings per share. But if you want to answer the really interesting questions-about heroes and hucksters, visionaries and madmen, and other larger-than-life characters-you need a reporter like Joe Nocera.

For more than twenty-five years Nocera has shed new light on the giants of the business world-Warren Buffett, T. Boone Pickens, Bob Nardelli-as well as on the less famous but equally fascinating. He builds stories around their motivations, personalities, and deepest characters. And instead of just pigeonholing them as good guys or bad guys, he explores the gray areas in between.

Author

Joe Nocera is an op-ed columnist for The New York Times. His previous books include All the Devils Are Here (with Bethany McLean), Good Guys and Bad Guys, and A Piece of the Action. He has won three Gerald Loeb Awards for excellence in business journalism and was a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize in 2006. Nocera lives in New York City. View titles by Joe Nocera