Each of them is one in a million. They number 6,000 on a planet of 6 billion. They run our governments, our largest corporations, the powerhouses of international finance, the media, world religions, and, from the shadows, the world's most dangerous criminal and terrorist organizations. They are the global superclass, and they are shaping the history of our time.
Today's superclass has achieved unprecedented levels of wealth and power. They have globalized more rapidly than any other group. But do they have more in common with one another than with their own countrymen, as nationalist critics have argued? They control globalization more than anyone else. But has their influence fed the growing economic and social inequity that divides the world? What happens behind closed-door meetings in Davos or aboard corporate jets at 41,000 feet? Conspiracy or collaboration? Deal-making or idle self-indulgence? What does the rise of Asia and Latin America mean for the conventional wisdom that shapes our destinies? Who sets the rules for a group that operates beyond national laws?
Drawn from scores of exclusive interviews and extensive original reporting, Superclass answers all of these questions and more. It draws back the curtain on a privileged society that most of us know little about, even though it profoundly affects our everyday lives. It is the first in-depth examination of the connections between the global communities of leaders who are at the helm of every major enterprise on the planet and control its greatest wealth. And it is an unprecedented examination of the trends within the superclass, which are likely to alter our politics, our institutions, and the shape of the world in which we live.
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"It started out a little slow, but in the end this was a fascinating book! I was a sociology major and it really resonated with me. If I do end up voting for Obama this book would have been a major factor in that decision."
— Mark (5 out of 5 stars)
“Neither hand-wringing nor worshipful, this book delivers an unsettling account of what the immense and growing power of this superclass bodes for the future.”
— Publishers Weekly (starred review)An informative, provocative guide to the global power elite.
— Vanity Fair" Very interesting about the powers and networking "
— Onthegotoo, 12/1/2013" Some parts read like US Weekly Does Davos-- which is fun and fine by me, by the way. "
— Pooja, 10/5/2013" " The most powerful mind altering drug in existance is oil " ( this guy knows what he's talking about ) Hard to read ( literally, the print was too close together ) "
— BAKU, 9/21/2013" Interesting, yet depressing "
— Aaron, 8/8/2013" Avoid.. "
— Marius, 12/2/2012" A look at the 6000 people who run the world-- though at times it is dry, there are some remarkable anecdotes and facts, and you will look at the news and the world with new skepticism. "
— Michael, 8/14/2011" I learned the names of the rich and how life is in the superclass. And they gather together to try to help the world some for recognition and some for real. "
— Judith, 4/6/2010" Interesting review of the power elite. I kept wishing for a bit more though. "
— Frances, 2/6/2009" So boring and long that I just put it down and threw it away. "
— Bill, 11/7/2008David J. Rothkopf, the author of ten nonfiction books, is a journalist and an analyst of political affairs, national security, and foreign policy. He is the founder and CEO of The Rothkopf Group and is also the podcast host of Deep State Radio. He has taught international affairs at Columbia University’s Graduate School of International and Public Affairs, the Georgetown School of Foreign Service, and the Johns Hopkins University’s Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies.
Patrick Lawlor, an award-winning narrator, is also an accomplished stage actor, director, and combat choreographer. He has worked extensively off Broadway and has been an actor and stuntman in both film and television. He has been an Audie Award finalist multiple times and has garnered several AudioFile Earphones Awards, a Publishers Weekly Listen-Up Award, and many starred audio reviews from Library Journal and Kirkus Reviews.