Dec. 10, 2003 It’s not unusual for Robert L. Johnson to draw a crowd. Nor is it unusual for the Hickory, Miss., native to have camera crews, reporters and fans sit rapt with attention. But when the founder of Black Entertainment Television—who recently became the first African American to own an NBA franchise—gave a speech at the Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs Conference last May, he spoke the unthinkable: He claimed that God wasn’t responsible for his success; it was due to his own hard work and business savvy.
