"There's no innocents"— Shark Tank mentor Mark Cuban addresses the collateral damage of corporate power

On December 13, 2024, Mark Cuban joined Jon Stewart on an episode of The Weekly Show to discuss how corporate power affects America. They explored how unchecked corporate influence can negatively affect the economy, government, and society. Cuban explained:

"There's no innocents. There's nobody with clean hands in any of this. Everybody has their role."

Cuban and Stewart discussed how businesses, the government, and individuals play a role in systemic issues. Cuban asserted that while corporate power is a significant concern, the government’s seeming inability to make clear and effective decisions worsens things.

The Shark Tank judge pointed out that decisions driven by lobbying and conflicting interests could lead to detrimental outcomes. Cuban questioned why some groups can make choices that adversely affect consumers and the economy. Additionally, he called for more accountability and changes to fix the system.

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Mark Cuban questions systemic accountability in the podcast

During the podcast, Cuban raised critical questions about accountability in corporate practices, particularly when they could adversely affect society. Referring to a case where algorithms denied healthcare coverage for profit, he said:

“Who hired him to do the preauthorization process? That’s the question people aren’t asking, and that needs to be answered.”

Cuban argued that the focus should not only be on the individuals implementing such systems but also on those enabling and profiting from them. He pointed out that corporations often act in ways that prioritize profits over ethics, but the systems that empower them are equally to blame.

Stewart echoed this concern, discussing how corporate lobbyists allegedly influence government decisions, making the system inefficient and favoring big money. Cuban acknowledged this but said that the issue goes beyond lobbying.

The conversation also touched on how corporate practices often lead to public outrage, as seen in cases of denied healthcare or economic instability. Cuban urged for transparency and better decision-making from both corporations and the government, arguing that neither can work efficiently without accountability.

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"We’re not getting value for the money" — Mark Cuban on government inefficiency

Furthermore, Mark Cuban spoke about the government’s role in regulating corporate power and how it often fails to make decisions that benefit the public.

"We’re not getting value for the money,” Cuban remarked, saying that the system often leaves citizens to deal with policies and inflated costs.

He explained that while the government has the authority to set rules for corporations, it doesn’t always use that power effectively.

“The government can work OK if it’s an efficient, transparent market. If it’s not, even though it’s big and you would think it can negotiate well, it doesn’t,” Cuban said.

He used pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) as an example. Cuban explained that the government could demand that PBMs share exact pricing information and stop using practices like rebates. However, he stated:

“The government has choices. They just don’t choose to make the obvious and best choice.”

Mark Cuban highlighted how these inefficiencies hurt regular people, who often pay higher costs because of these policies and corporate influence. To fix these problems, he stressed the importance of holding decision-makers accountable and educating them about better solutions.

“You have to educate the people who have an influence,” he said.

Cuban said that he believes that addressing these inefficiencies can reduce the alleged detrimental effects caused by corporate power and create a system that serves the public better.

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Fans can watch Mark Cuban in the recent season of Shark Tank, airing every Friday on ABC.