About this episode
Lewis got incredible access to Sam Bankman-Fried, the billionaire behind the spectacular FTX fraud. His book is a bestseller, but some critics say he went too easy on S.B.F. Lewis tells us why the critics are wrong — and what it’s like to watch your book get turned into a courtroom drama. SOURCES: Michael Lewis , author. RESOURCES: Going Infinite: The Rise and Fall of a New Tycoon , by Michael Lewis (2023). " Column: In Michael Lewis, Sam Bankman-Fried Found His Last and Most Willing Victim ," by Michael Hiltzik ( Los Angeles Times, 2023). " Even Michael Lewis Can’t Make a Hero Out of Sam Bankman-Fried ," by Jennifer Szalai ( The New York Times, 2023). " Michael Lewis Goes Close on Sam Bankman-Fried — Maybe Too Close ," by James Ledbetter ( The Washington Post, 2023). " What You Won’t Learn From Michael Lewis’ Book on FTX Could Fill Another Book ," by Julia M. Klein ( Los Angeles Times, 2023). " Michael Lewis’s Big Contrarian Bet ," by Gideon Lewis-Kraus ( The New Yorker, 2023). " He-Said, They-Said ," by John Lanchester ( London Review of Books, 2023). " Downfall of the Crypto King ," by Jesse Armstrong ( The Times Literary Supplement, 2023). " FTX Debtors vs. Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried ," in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware (2023). Federal Prosecution of Election Offenses: Eighth Edition , by Richard C. Pilger (2017). " Pay Candidates to Drop Out? That Should Be Legal ," by Stephen L. Carter ( Bloomberg, 2016). " The History of the Term 'Effective Altruism ,'" by William MacAskill ( Effective Altruism Forum, 2014). EXTRAS: " Is This 'The Worst Job in Corporate America' — or Maybe the Best? " by Freakonomics Radio (2023). " A Million-Year View on Morality ," by People I (Mostly) Admire (2022). “ Did Michael Lewis Just Get Lucky with 'Moneyball'? ” by Freakonomics Radio (2022). Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.