Media mogul Pat Robertson had a staple household name all over the world since the 1960s. He established his career as the founder of multiple organizations, including the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) and the Christian Coalition of America, as a televangelist, and a best-selling author helped him build his riches. While there are no exact figures regarding his wealth, some believe that Robertson has about $100 million net worth. Here is how the versatile media personality earned his money.
Pat Robertson: Early Life
Pat, whose real name is Marion Gordon Robertson, was born into a very famous political family from Lexington, Virginia, on March 22, 1930. His father was the conservative Democrat senator Absalom Willis Robertson, and his mother was Glady Churchill, a musician, and a housewife. He earned his nickname Pat from his brother, Willis Jr., who enjoyed patting his cheeks.
Robertson’s parents enrolled him at the private McDonogh School located in Owings Mills, Maryland, at the age of 11. He then moved to The McCallie School in Tennessee, where he had an exceptional academic career. He studied History at the Washington and Lee University and received the magna cum laude distinction.
After earning his degree, the US government reinstated the mandatory draft in the country in 1948. Robertson was allowed to choose if he wants to join the Marine Corps or the Army. He decided to pick the Marines. He reportedly spent his military service in North Korea and Japan.
When he returned to the US, he enrolled at Yale Law School and earned his law degree in 1955. However, he was not successful in his first and only try to pass the New York bar exam to qualify for the New York State Bar Association. Soon after his bar attempt, Robertson had a religious conversion when he met a Dutch missionary named Cornelius Vandebreggen. In 1959, he decided to enroll at The Biblical Seminary located in New York to earn his Master of Divinity.
Pat Robertson: Life In Christian Broadcasting
By 1960, Robertson was able to purchase a small UHF station in Portsmouth, Virginia. Then he bought a leased access cable TV network in Hampton Roads in 1977, then decided to call it the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN). He originally went from one house to another in Virginia Beach and surrounding areas and canvases local churches to ask Christians to purchase cable boxes so they can access his channel. He also asked for donations for every public speaking engagement.
Today, CBN became one of the most successful networks worldwide. It is accessible in 180 countries and broadcasted in approximately 71 languages. The success allowed him to establish the CBN Cable Network, which later on became the CBN Family Channel. Now referred to as The Family Channel, it became highly profitable, making it a problem for CBN to maintain its non-profit status. To address the issue, Robertson built the International Family Entertainment Inc. in 1990.
Later on, he sold the Family Channel in 1997 to the News Corporation, which changed its name to Fox Family. As part of the deal, the station would keep on airing Robertson’s TV show “The 700 Club.”
Pat Robertson: Other Ventures
Robertson established the CBN University in 1977 at the Virginia Beach campus of the network and served as its chancellor. He later renamed it Regent University in 1989. He also founded and served as the president of the American Center for Law & Justice.
In 1986, Robertson made his intention to seek the nomination to become the President of the US under the Republican party. When three million signed up to volunteer for his campaign, he pushed through with his decision to run and surrendered his ministerial credentials and CBN leadership to his son Tim. But then incumbent Vice President George H. W. Bush beat him in the nominations. He decided to return to CBN to go back to his religious broadcasting career.
Aside from broadcasting, Robertson also earned money from his best-selling book “The New World Order.” He also had a financial guide titled “Right on the Money: Financial Advice for Tough Times,” released in 2009.
For all of these ventures, it is not surprising that Robertson could amass $100 million throughout his career.
